Royal gramma and neon dottyback?

r.bergonia19 · Jun 8, 2016

Is it okay to put a royal gramma and neon dottyback togethere or they're gonna kill each other?

AlexG · Jun 8, 2016

I would not recommend trying this. It is possible to house a group of royal gammas together is a large tank 100+ gallons. Dottybacks are very aggressive while the royal gramma is more laid back.

r.bergonia19 · Jun 9, 2016

AlexG said:
I would not recommend trying this. It is possible to house a group of royal gammas together is a large tank 100+ gallons. Dottybacks are very aggressive while the royal gramma is more laid back.

Well they don't have the same color and body.

AlexG · Jun 9, 2016

I would not look at it as similar color or body type but more of a behavior pattern. Both of these fish are small and territorial. In a large system it might be possible but with just two fish I think there would be more issues. I used to keep 3 royal grammas in a 120 and they did scrap here and there but they all had a clearly defined territory in the tank. When there are more than two fish that act this way the aggression can be broken up so a single fish is not the constant target of the aggression. With only two fish there is a chance that one will be dominant and attack the other fish until it is dead. Then again they might get along but from my experience I would not put these fish together unless it was a large system 100+ gallons and even then I would be looking to add a group of 3-5 at the same time depending on the tank size. What is your tank size?

Desmond · Jun 9, 2016

As said above i would not advise this. Dottyback can kill fish bigger than them. They can be very aggressive. The royal gramma are very laid back and relaxed and would not stand a chance or else be in hiding all the time.

Reefalicious! · Jan 14, 2022

I tried this combo. They were fine for the first 10 months, but as the neon dotty grew larger, it's aggression increased dramatically. One morning, I found my gramma with all of it's fins half torn off and laying limp on the bottom of the tank. I moved him to QT and, amazing, was able to nurse him back to health. He now lives happily in my sump. I am planning to remove the neon from my main display as I predict he will be problems for other fish I hope to add. Foolish me for thinking this fish would act differently under my care. Some fish are just destined to be serial killers no matter the quality of the therapy I can offer.