Poll: How old is your oldest SW fish? And what is it?

[64Ivy]

Got two. First,a Purple Tang which I acquired some 19 years ago and second, a Striatus Bristletooth which I got six months later. No real tips: they're in a very large (500 g) and lightly populated tank and have always been fed a high quality, mostly frozen diet.

 

[mfinn]

I have had a pair of GSM clowns in 3 tanks. They spent 8 years in a 180 gallon tank, then another 8 years in a 240 gallon tank and now 4 years in my current 233 gallon tank.
I figure they were close to 1 year old when I got them from Flying Fish Express, so they are 20-21 years old.
When I first got them, they both had perfect gold stripes and were about 1" long. Now the female is 5" and bites like a demon.
The female remembers, every move I've put them through and hates me for it.

 

[s2nhle]

My hippo and yellow tangs still live with me for over 6 yrs now.

 

[van7271]

10 year old yellow tang. No tips just consistency.

 

[chicago]

Pair if Blue tangs. Purchased in 1991. From 1 inch to full grown. Died in 2016 from fumes from floor sanding. So bummed bet would have lived another five

 

[ArowanaLover1902]

My oldest (just got rid of a bit ago) was a royal gramma. He was with me for 3 tank upgrades, finally he got so aggressive I couldn't add new fish. He went back to the LFS (they agreed to take him back after 2 years).

 

[7hogwarts]

I think my oldest critter is a Coral Banded shrimp. I've had him 8-9 years. I bought him from a fellow reefer who had him for 2-3 years. When I got him his antenna spread was 6-7 inches. now in excess of 12 inches. I have no idea how long they live.
Fish wise is my Purple Tang. 8 years old.

 

[Jpconer]

My oldest is an 12 or 13 yr old - 9" Masked Heniochus that I've had for over 11 yrs...I estestimate his(?) overall age since it was 4+ inches when he came home...

 

[wooglins]

Pair of Black clownfish. 20+ or so years old. When I got them previous owner had them for 10 years. That was about 12 or so years ago.

 

[rjdasilva]

My Ocellaris is 12 years old. Happily living alone in my torch coral since I moved my bubble coral into wife’s tank. My coral beauty lived to 15 years. My Regal Tang is about 11 years.
I believe they’re doing well due to somewhat stable water parameters.

 

[Frogger]

I have a female ocellaris clownfish I got in the mid nineties from a fellow hobbist who had it for at least 3 to 4 years. She was already full size. I guessing she is over 25. I paired it up with a young juvenile 23 years ago and they have been laying eggs ever since. Last batch was several months ago. Poor male clownfish he is at least 23 years old and still a male.

They have outlived 2 of my dogs.

I also had a yellow tang that died a year ago that I had before the clownfish no idea how old it was. My purple tang i had for 20 years. It died several years ago.

 

[RtomKinMad]

T

I have a female ocellaris clownfish I got in the mid nineties from a fellow hobbist who had it for at least 3 to 4 years. She was already full size. I guessing she is over 25. I paired it up with a young juvenile 23 years ago and they have been laying eggs ever since. Last batch was several months ago. Poor male clownfish he is at least 23 years old and still a male.

They have outlived 2 of my dogs.

I also had a yellow tang that died a year ago that I had before the clownfish no idea how old it was. My purple tang i had for 20 years. It died several years ago.

this is super cool. I’m so excit d to hear all this accounts of old fish! I hope mine will live this long. Our Sohal, Koran and porcupine puffer are over ten we have only had for 2 yrs the other years were with someone else. Our yellow tang, hippo tang and 4 clowns we have had for four years together. Hope we have for a very long time!

 

[Frogger]

I have found the secret is tank stability, not overstocking and quarantining everything for at least 4 weeks and I forgot luck.

 

[RtomKinMad]

I have found the secret is tank stability, not overstocking and quarantining everything for at least 4 weeks and I forgot luck.

We have found you are certainly right! All of it. We learned the hard way with no quarantine a few times. Thank goodness all of our tanks are stable now and we don’t plan to add any new fish. Thank you for your reply.

 

[sawdonkey]

I got Gary in 2003

 

[I_Got_Crabs]

My Ocellaris is 12 years old. Happily living alone in my torch coral since I moved my bubble coral into wife’s tank. My coral beauty lived to 15 years. My Regal Tang is about 11 years.
I believe they’re doing well due to somewhat stable water parameters.

You are a good person to ask, did your coral beauty ever eat corals (zoas,sps and fleshy LPS)? I have heard it 50/50 with flames and coral beauties, but then others say all angels eat coral eventually. Its not if but when...

 

[michael_cb_125]

I have had my bandit Angel's for 10 years, little babies when I got them.

 

[Bob Weigant]

since returning to the hobby 2 years ago my oldest fish is my Blonde Naso and the Banggai Cardinal. Both have done well from the very start

 

[Mirkus]

I have a 12 year old tomato clown and a 10 year old blue-green chromis. No real tips, feed them and cover your tank. I’ve lost a few fish via jumping

 

[s2nhle]

My yellow tang and Hippo are still lived for more than 5 yrs now. They both survived several power outage for several days during the cold winter and battery power air pump.