Need help deciding on whether or not a fish is right for your tank? Post here and we'll help!

[MiguelCS71]

Gobies don't eat pods....they are sand sifters, sifting out algae and stuff outta the sand.

 

[eatbreakfast]

Ya the plan is to do the mandarin after a year. I was wondering if the goby would compete with the mandarin for pods.

Diamond gobies eat microfauna within the sandbed, some copepods get consumed, but not enough to provide any real competition for the mandarin.

In a well established 120g with a refugium, there isn't a need to target feed a mandarin.

 

[Mombo]

My wife really wanted a mandarin but I told her we couldn't support 1 with our 30. Which got me wife approval for the new 120g....win. Good to know about the gobies. Diamond and Orange spot are fairly similar then when it comes to raising them then? Just different looks.

 

[eatbreakfast]

My wife really wanted a mandarin but I told her we couldn't support 1 with our 30. Which got me wife approval for the new 120g....win. Good to know about the gobies. Diamond and Orange spot are fairly similar then when it comes to raising them then? Just different looks.

Valencienna puellaris is usually called diamond goby, but on some occasions is called orange spotted goby, is a sand sifter.

Amblyeleotris guttatus, is more often referred to as orange spotted goby and is a watchman goby, not a sifter.

 

[Mombo]

Ahhh - So I want a Diamond Goby if I want the one that gulps sand and filters it..... It just looks so cool.

Orange spot if I want to pair one with a Pistol Shrimp.

Can you have a Watchman and a Sand Sifter at the same time? Or do they get angry at each other?

 

[eatbreakfast]

Ahhh - So I want a Diamond Goby if I want the one that gulps sand and filters it..... It just looks so cool.

Orange spot if I want to pair one with a Pistol Shrimp.

Can you have a Watchman and a Sand Sifter at the same time? Or do they get angry at each other?

Sifters and watchman gobies coexist.

 

[Mombo]

Thanks for the help y'all.

 

[armronstrong]

Hello,
I have a RS reefer nano started. I am planning on a more of a mixed reef tank. I'll have minimal fish livestock. I would like a shrimp/ goby pair, and a swimmer. I have not made a firm decision on the swimmer. a clown pair is obvious, cardinals do not interest me too much.

Is their another option for that "swimmer" spot that would be a good fit? something to avoid with the goby pair?

Is there a better order of addition swimmer first.. goby first....? goby/shrimp as a pair?

R

 

[cracker]

Any experience out there with the Red or Diana's Hogfish? I understand they are very aggressive and can grow large. It would be in a 180 Fish only. there is a resident pair of maroon clowns where the male is pretty small. The male pretty much stays in it's rock pile . there is a Copper Band also .Other than that I may add a 6 or 7 school of anthias but other additions will be larger and not too wimpy maybe a couple more butterfly's or tangs.
Thanks for any insight. I'm not afraid to add this fish but wonder how it will change future additions. Thanks for any insight .

 

[SashimiTurtle]

Yellowtail reef basslet Liopropoma mitratum and black cap basslet Gramma melacara added at the same time. Possible agression issues or will they be ok because of different Genus?

 

[eatbreakfast]

Hello,
I have a RS reefer nano started. I am planning on a more of a mixed reef tank. I'll have minimal fish livestock. I would like a shrimp/ goby pair, and a swimmer. I have not made a firm decision on the swimmer. a clown pair is obvious, cardinals do not interest me too much.

Is their another option for that "swimmer" spot that would be a good fit? something to avoid with the goby pair?

Is there a better order of addition swimmer first.. goby first....? goby/shrimp as a pair?

R

Any swimmer will be fine with the goby/shrimp pr. Order also doesn't matter.

Some mid level options include: yellow assessor, royal gramma, swales basslet, pink streak wrasse, chalk basslet.

Any experience out there with the Red or Diana's Hogfish? I understand they are very aggressive and can grow large. It would be in a 180 Fish only. there is a resident pair of maroon clowns where the male is pretty small. The male pretty much stays in it's rock pile . there is a Copper Band also .Other than that I may add a 6 or 7 school of anthias but other additions will be larger and not too wimpy maybe a couple more butterfly's or tangs.
Thanks for any insight. I'm not afraid to add this fish but wonder how it will change future additions. Thanks for any insight .

With those species, the hogfish will be fine.

Yellowtail reef basslet Liopropoma mitratum and black cap basslet Gramma melacara added at the same time. Possible agression issues or will they be ok because of different Genus?

They both want a cave. As long as the tank has a cave for each, they will be fine added simultaneously.

 

[RikardJ]

I'm setting up a 30g tank in December, so I expect to be able to add the first fish in February

I don't have the light to support coral, so it will only be fish. It will be with live rock though

I'm considering the following fish:

- 2 clownfish, oscelaris.
- 1 goby, probably yellow watchman
- 1 royal gramma

I'm not sure if there are any advantages of 2 clownfish rather than one?
Do all gobies pair with shrimps?
Any other colorful fish that are suitable for a beginner? The purple fire fish are gorgeous, but it sounds like they have a tendency to be bullied by the clowns, so not sure about those

 

[Kremis]

good stock list. A pair of clownfish is nice imo, but 1 will do just fine.not all gobies pair with shrimps, but yellow watchman gobies do. Firefish are pretty colurful, and other gobies can be cool.

 

[Jmas4]

I'm setting up a 30g tank in December, so I expect to be able to add the first fish in February

I don't have the light to support coral, so it will only be fish. It will be with live rock though

I'm considering the following fish:

- 2 clownfish, oscelaris.
- 1 goby, probably yellow watchman
- 1 royal gramma

I'm not sure if there are any advantages of 2 clownfish rather than one?
Do all gobies pair with shrimps?
Any other colorful fish that are suitable for a beginner? The purple fire fish are gorgeous, but it sounds like they have a tendency to be bullied by the clowns, so not sure about those

+1 ^ A pair does look nicer imo but 1 clown can live just fine. Not all gobys pair but ywg do. If you want to keep fire fish i recommend it be the first fish in your tank.

 

[RikardJ]

So if I try to adhere to a rule of thumb of 1 inch fish per 5 gallon, I should aim for 6 inches.

From liveaquaria it looks like the purchase size of all these are about 1 1/2 inch each, which would cap it at 4.

Is it a poor choice to go with 4 different fish, e.g firefish, YWG, clown, royal gramma? I would probably stock a firefish and ywg first?

 

[Kremis]

So if I try to adhere to a rule of thumb of 1 inch fish per 5 gallon, I should aim for 6 inches.

From liveaquaria it looks like the purchase size of all these are about 1 1/2 inch each, which would cap it at 4.

Is it a poor choice to go with 4 different fish, e.g firefish, YWG, clown, royal gramma? I would probably stock a firefish and ywg first?

there is no per inch rule in saltwater. for instance, I have several garden eels in my 28 gallon which would add up to well over 50 inches of fish (makes no sense, right?) it all depends on the type of fish, how aggressive it is, what its natural behaviour is, etc.

For instance, my eels don't leave their holes, and stay put. they dont need swimming room. However, a 3 inch tang still needs a good 4-6 feet of room. It also depends on how effective your filtration is. Better filtratiln = can handle higher bioload. Another thing that stocking depends on is what part of the tank the fish occupy. For example, say you have 3 gobies already and want 1 more, but no water column fish. that might be pushing it as the rockwork is already crowded with gobies.

as for aggresiveness, all the fish you chose are pretty peaceful and shouldnt bother eachother very much.

 

[Newb73]

I want to add a pair of maroon clowns and a few yellow tail damsels in with 3 domino damsels, a java rabit and a picasso trigger.

The trigger, dominos and rabbit do fine together.

I suspect the maroons will fit in im just sure what happens when yellow tail damsels go in.

Standard 90g. It gets 100% of the water changed each month.

 

[Renelope]

Damels? I really like the look of a domino or 3 stripe damsel, but I’ve read they are quite aggressive, with my stock list is a damsel out of the question? I don’t really see them in people’s stock lists so my guess is no...

One spot fox face
Yellow tang
Kole tang
Lyretail anthias-3
Cardinals-3
Clowns-2
Diamond watchman goby

 

[MiguelCS71]

Damsels in general are aggressive. But at a young age can usually go with almost any fish until they start getting older, bigger and more confident along with more tempermental.....(being nice)....if they grow with the other fish, probably, they might be ok...but that's because the others are bigger. But the Kole tang, the anthias and the watchman goby are very very non- aggressive wish and might not do well with a damsel in the tank. Personally, I would stay without one with those fish in your tank. I lost my first Flame angel to damsels so I know! But if the tank is big enough, with enough rockwork and a little luck, you might get by. Try another kind of colorful fish that's peaceful or roll the dice...lol

 

[Renelope]

Damsels in general are aggressive. But at a young age can usually go with almost any fish until they start getting older, bigger and more confident along with more tempermental.....(being nice)....if they grow with the other fish, probably, they might be ok...but that's because the others are bigger. But the Kole tang, the anthias and the watchman goby are very very non- aggressive wish and might not do well with a damsel in the tank. Personally, I would stay without one with those fish in your tank. I lost my first Flame angel to damsels so I know! But if the tank is big enough, with enough rockwork and a little luck, you might get by. Try another kind of colorful fish that's peaceful or roll the dice...lol

Thanks for the reply, my Kole is actually the most aggressive fish in my tank, he’s quite a jerk! Lol
I have a 90 gallon DT- would another damsel or something similar in shape or color be a better choice?

Thanks again!