Planning New Predator Tank and Need Your Help

[LabradorGirl]

Hi everyone, my husband and I have been keeping a reef tank and have fallen in love with lots of the predator fish. We decided it was time to add a predator tank. I did a ton of research prior to purchasing fish for our reef tank and we had much success so I'd like to carefully plan the predator tank as well. I need your help though. We have a few things in mind but, not sure if they are compatible or how many of these guys will work in our 120 gal. Can you please advise and offer suggestions as well. Thank you for your help!

The fish is in our wish list are in order of priority to us.

Wish List
1. Volitan Lionfish
2. Snowflake Eel
3. Niger Trigger
4. Picasso Trigger
5. Some type of Puffer
6. Your Suggestions

 

[TheShrimpNibbler]

I think that the lion and moray would do well together. If you like a zebra moray, that’s also an option in your tank size. The niger trigger is pretty mellow as far as triggers go, so that could work with them too. I don’t know about the picasso, I’ve heard that they are pretty aggressive. Get some more cperienced opinions on that one though. A puffer could probably work too. As far as other suggestions, some tangs could work.
YES-
Lion
Moray
Niger trigger
Tang
Puffer

MAYBE/ IFFY
Picasso

 

[lion king]

The volitan and snowflake would be a great nucleus for a 120g predator tank. The triggers will outgrow that tank, the niger fairly quickly. Both those triggers need a 6 foot tank in the 180g or larger range. Even though the picasso grows slowly, his aggression would eventually outgrow a 4 foot tank.

Puffers are tricky, I have always had a dogface puffer(Arothron nigropunctatus) with my lions, your 120g is really in the grey area of being too small. I've never considered keeping the smaller puffers(Canthigaster genus) with my volitans, and the blue spot is a notorious nipper so I am very biased against keeping one of those. All of the other puffers would get too large.

While not a predator, a one spot foxface works well in this sort of tank, as well as a bristletooth tang or yellow tang; maybe even a dwarf angel.

 

[Mmun]

Hi everyone, my husband and I have been keeping a reef tank and have fallen in love with lots of the predator fish. We decided it was time to add a predator tank. I did a ton of research prior to purchasing fish for our reef tank and we had much success so I'd like to carefully plan the predator tank as well. I need your help though. We have a few things in mind but, not sure if they are compatible or how many of these guys will work in our 120 gal. Can you please advise and offer suggestions as well. Thank you for your help!

The fish is in our wish list are in order of priority to us.

Wish List
1. Volitan Lionfish
2. Snowflake Eel
3. Niger Trigger
4. Picasso Trigger
5. Some type of Puffer
6. Your Suggestions

If you want a trigger look at blue jaw or maybe red tail. The niger gets really big and at some point the Picasso might go psycho and kill everything.

 

[TheShrimpNibbler]

I think that the lion and moray would do well together. If you like a zebra moray, that’s also an option in your tank size. The niger trigger is pretty mellow as far as triggers go, so that could work with them too. I don’t know about the picasso, I’ve heard that they are pretty aggressive. Get some more cperienced opinions on that one though. A puffer could probably work too. As far as other suggestions, some tangs could work.
YES-
Lion
Moray
Niger trigger
Tang
Puffer

MAYBE/ IFFY
Picasso

I just read back through my post and realized that I forgot something. I meant to also include that not all of the fish in the yes list would be able to permanently stay in the tank due to size restrictions, but they could work temporarily until they outgrew the tank.

 

[Damon Jensen]

Hi everyone, my husband and I have been keeping a reef tank and have fallen in love with lots of the predator fish. We decided it was time to add a predator tank. I did a ton of research prior to purchasing fish for our reef tank and we had much success so I'd like to carefully plan the predator tank as well. I need your help though. We have a few things in mind but, not sure if they are compatible or how many of these guys will work in our 120 gal. Can you please advise and offer suggestions as well. Thank you for your help!

The fish is in our wish list are in order of priority to us.

Wish List
1. Volitan Lionfish
2. Snowflake Eel
3. Niger Trigger
4. Picasso Trigger
5. Some type of Puffer
6. Your Suggestions

I have almost the exact list, sub in a Zebra moray. I have a dog face puffer.
My tank is 200 gl
Picasso, Niger, Clown triggers
Dog face puffer
Rock mover wrasse
Emperor Angel
Batfish
Cow fish
Saltwater catfish
File fish and thread fin butterfly to eat aphasia
Blue streak wrasse to cleaning
3 chocolate chip starfish
1 sea hare

Sounds crowded, but I think it is a good mix of slow swimmers and faster swimmers. No territorial fights.

Ii have 0 luck with crustaceans even cleaner shrimp will become dinner. Urchins= dinner.

 

[Damon Jensen]

I have had my picasso for 3 1/2 years. He has had 2 Niger to raise, one out grew the tank. I have also had these mixed with clown triggers and amazingly, the trigger seem to get along.

I usually added new fish with a scarficial fish, so there is something smaller to go after. I also have some larger fish so the triggers are not the biggest guys.

My picasso has survived 3 tank nuking. My Niger is one of the most beautiful I have ever see...deep purple and green. Teeth are starting to turn red

Right now I have half my fish in QT.....massive ick.