No bones about it! Have you thought about keeping an invertebrate-only tank?

[Peace River]

No bones about it! Have you thought about keeping an invertebrate-only tank?

Whether it is a Rock Flower Anemones tank with shrimp or a softie-only tank with random inverts, have you ever had thoughts about keeping an invertebrate-only tank? Maybe you already have one and haven’t thought about it in those terms. Please let us know if an invertebrate only tank is interesting to you and if you were to plan an invert only tank what it would look like. Please share your ideas, tips, and recommendations about an invert only tank in the related discussion.

Photo by @TheHarold


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[Fish Styx]

After seeing @OrchidMiss 's mantis shrimp tank, I want a "Murderbug" of my own. I'll likely set up an AIO after the holidays.

 

[italquam]

I definitely want to do it at some point, maybe a nice 40 gallon setup

 

[Gumbies R Us]

I think it would be an interesting idea, but I have no plans of doing this

 

[AtlantiCat]

Inverts all the way!!!

Not too many fish options with the smaller nano tanks. I wouldn't even consider keeping the smallest goby in a tank less than 10 gallons, so if you nano, inverts are the way to go! I find them easily just as interesting as fish.

 

[dank.reefer]

I currently keep and invert tank were all incoming corals and other various inverts IE snails, shrimp, crabs are qt'd for 90 days before going into the display. It gives ample time for any encysted viruses to run their course and any coral pests time to show themselves before infecting my main tank. I had never thought of it as more than a QT tank but it is a 100% invert tank. It is just a simple 20g with an HOB skimmer some live rock and a canister filter with some chemipure in it. every 90 days or so the inhabitants are changed out for someone new.

 

[kevgib67]

Na, I like the full coral reef look, fish, corals, crabs, snails, anemones etc.

 

[Digimes]

My current in process build will be inverts and corals, no fish. Additional corals, crabs and shrimp coming soon.

 

[OrchidMiss]

Yes, I have a Waterbox 15 that houses my Dark Mantis Shrimp, Neogonodactylus curacaoensis, Murderbug.

Johnny 5 is Alive!

Well, another thing happened today... 5th tank has made my addiction a real thing . Hi, my name is Suzi, and I'm a reefing addict.

www.reef2reef.com

Rock flowers and some coral will eventually be added, as well as some more little crabs (snackies).

 

[Ron Reefman]

I have two 40g AIO tanks. One is coral, anemones & feather dusters with a CUC. The other is all local (Florida) collected critters (including a 3" mantis shrimp) and 2 clowns that are a 'rescue' from a friend.

I find these tanks to require FAR less maintenance than the previous reef tanks I've had... both big and small, both with and without sumps or refugiums!

 

[SPS2020]

I have had an invert only tank in the past. Fish poop is my friend with my Acro tank though.

 

[GARRIGA]

In the 80s. Many a reef tank at the LFS were just that plus soft corals. All that was needed was a 20g plus live rock winch often brought it's own soft corals and inverts. Not everyone cured their live rock back then best I remembered.

 

[JayM]

I have not thought about it, but if the spots on my tang turn out to be ich, I may have to for at least a few months.

 

[vlangel]

Someday I may downsize from my current 56 gallon to a 10-15 gallon nano and I would definitely consider an invert only then. I also have a one gallon jar that I have kept as a pico and it is well suited for some inverts.

 

[Paul B]

I actually like crustaceans better than fish or corals and have had invert tanks in the past. Normally I collect the inverts here in New York like this rock crab, very common here.



I have also kept quite a few times fiddler crabs in a special tank built for them



My hermit crab in my avatar is a local New York hermit crab. I took that picture at night while SCUBA diving here.



I used to have a sea urchin collection business and this is one of them.



These tiny octopus hatched out in my tank



And I collect amphipods.

 

[hart24601]

I have tried a couple times to have invert only tanks, one a rock nem nano, the other a clam only system.

Surprisingly enough both times very large pods grew, no idea of species, but they chewed on clam mantels and the rock nem mouths!

I didn’t want to add fish, but did put in a single small fish to control the pods and didn’t have issues after that.

 

[shakacuz]

i'm not against having an invertebrate only tank, but i do appreciate the look/feel of a mixed reef.

perhaps my office tank can be an invert-only tank

 

[MartinM]

Cant beat it imo. From succesfully spawning and rearing coral to actual plankton swarming around, an invert only tank (with no mechanical filtration or skimmer, that's constantly dosed with food from 1 to 300 microns + aminos) is just too cool if you enjoy biodiversity. but I'm not a big fan of reef fish, so it works for me.

Never had an issue of pods eating my clams, so that's good.

 

[JoJosReef]

I thought about a small Harlequin shrimp tank, but the feeding would get a bit tiresome. Also think about a pico nem/sexy shrimp harem tank. I'm unfamiliar with sizes of maxi minis, but if they stayed small enough I'd put them in a 3-5gal with sexies.

 

[padilla95624]

I have a 30 gallon lantern tip BTA only tank. It started out as one and some fish but quickly squeezed out the fish and became 20!