So what's your thoughts on Damsel fish?

[Lionfish Lair]

Damsels typically not "nice", I'll agree to that. However, the meanest damsel of all (in my scarred opinion) is the blood drawing clownfish. We have no problem telling someone to stick a beelzebub clown in there, but warn people of the sometimes milder "general damsel".

 

[john.m.cole3]

I never knew clownfish were actually damsels. My female clown does like to nip at my hand when I have my hand in the tank, but dhe never draws blood. It scares me to death though and I'm more afraid I will mess up my light than lose my hand, lol

 

[Lionfish Lair]

They're from the same family.

 

[AllSignsPointToFish]

I have 3 Springeri Damsels. Reef safe and not aggressive.

I had one or two of these and I found them to be similar in demeanor to the yellowtails.

 

[KingBlingTX]

+1 for the Springeri. Mine is very mild-mannered

 

[Steve Maxwell]

So do the Springeri tend to fan the sand alot? I had a blue damsel that made a mess of my tank.

 

[d2mini]

So do the Springeri tend to fan the sand alot? I had a blue damsel that made a mess of my tank.

Mine don't go near the sand. Mid/upper tank swimmers.

 

[KingBlingTX]

So do the Springeri tend to fan the sand alot? I had a blue damsel that made a mess of my tank.

Mine is in bare-bottom frag tank, so I can't comment on their sand activities

 

[clekchau]

I have a 350 gallon with seven of them in there and I'll never get any more ever again and when I go to a 650 gallon they will not be going in there there mean they attack all the tangs and angelfish I hate them

Weird I have a group of 3 different types of damsels yellow tail, Starki and honey , none of them ever attack any of my tangs , over 12 tangs. They do attack my finger when I put it near their territory.

I'm thinking of adding more they add so much movement and personality in my opinion

 

[Azarus]

I thaw and rinse frozen brine shrimp in a loose tea infuser like this. I then submerge the infuser in the tank, tipping slightly to allow to brine shrimp to float out.

After two weeks, the damsels started swimming right into the cup. A quick tip of the cup and I could catch them easily if I wanted.

 

[Justin D]

I have 9 of them if I could I would flush everyone in the toilet they're mean jerks

 

[scchase]

Damsels get a bad rap but in my experience this is due to some fundamental misunderstandings of the entire group. First there are many different groups which include damsels, clownfish, and Chromis. Each group has some aggressive members and others that aren’t so bad as anyone who has had a murderous maroon clown can attest. Next despite their small size they frequently do not make good fish for small aquariums. There are a few exceptions namely Ocellaris /Percula clowns and some of the smaller Chromis species. With the exception of the Chromis group nearly all other species form territories that they will vigorously defend, the size of these territories and how aggressive they are in defending it largely determines how much trouble they are going to cause you. For tank size the main consideration isn’t total water volume but how much territory is available for the fish to claim, so a tall skinny aquarium will have much less usable space than a shallow deep one.

The most suitable species defend very small territories (think less than 8”x8”) and in general are easily bullied by other fish that are even marginally bigger than them. This group would include Chrysiptera hemicyanea, C.parasema, C. springeri, C. talboti, and the gorgeous C. traceyi. For this group I would recommend a minimum tank size of approx 40 gallons if you wish to keep them with other small fish though any would be perfectly happy by themselves or with other feisty fish in a tank as small as 20 gallons. In a large aquarium (180g+) a group will each establish individual territories that they vigorously defend from one another and in general ignore anything else bigger than they are in favor of squabbling with each other. Also worth mentioning is that in my experience all damsels in this group will eat flatworms to one degree or another and are useful in their control.

This group of Azure damsels in my tank would swim up in the water column normally but at the first sign of danger flee back into the rocks. They were on the bottom of the pecking order this tank.

They next group as far as aggression would include C. starcki, C.cyanea, C. taupou, and the Pomacentrus sp. This group of fish is still not holy terrors that their cousins in Dascyllus, Neoglyphyidodon, and Ambylglyhidodon are but they can hold their own with more aggressive fish as well. Their territories are roughly double the size of the previous group and I would recommend a tank at least 75g in size for a single fish in this group. Once again in a large tank they will disperse and form territories that they fight each other for, coming together to breed when they feel the need.


The final general grouping includes nearly all species in Dascyllus, Neoglyphyidodon, and Ambylglyhidodon. These fish get large and can hold their own with triggerfish and other aggressive fish. They excel in being used as dither fish in aggressive tanks and many get large enough to not be immediate prey to predatory fish if given a head start. Sadly they are also sold to cycle tanks and as a result are frequently bought by beginners where they establish a territory that includes the entire tank and then murder everything else that is added after them. As a special not several species of Neoglyphyidodon are sold as honey Chromis as juveniles, while pretty when young they grow up to be big mean grey/brown fish.

Appropriate tankmates for this group.

So some final rules, don't add them to a tank first, get the other fish in that you want that are not as assertive, make sure that you are buying from a group that is suitable to your needs, and finally don't be afraid of this group of fish, there are many that if they weren't so inexpensive would be highly sought out for their colors and patterns.

 

[iiluisii]

I love my starki damsel I'm hopping to find another one they are great fish kind of shy wish is weird for damsels

 

[Maritimer]

I'll chime in as an additional for C. hemicyanea, the azure damselfish. I've got three of them in a 65 - I think they're one female and two males. The boys have bolt-holes on either end of the tank, and the lady flirts between them - but spawns consistently with the one on the right. As a strange addendum to that dynamic, I've seen all three snuggle into the same hole in the pukani at night to sleep. They're awfully similar to yellowtails - just a bit more yellow - but they offered a brilliant blue pop that I couldn't resist, along with near-constant darting activity above the rock.

They have been known to get uppity with new introductions, but a full-length mirror at one end of the tank seems to help with diffusing their focus on the new guy.

~Bruce

 

[LetItReef]

Used to keep a Blue spot Damsel same pic above on a standard 29g. Beat to death a Royal gramma, flipped frags And made sandstorm. That Damsel is back to LFS.

 

[AdamNC]

Well I decided to pull the trigger on a female Fiji Blue Devil Damsel(Chrysiptera taupou). Beautiful fish and already out and about the tank like she's been in there for a while.

not my pic but this is the one.

 

[saltyhog]

I have kept an Azure in a 6 foot tank with a bunch of wrasses without any issues. He was actually at the bottom of the pecking order with a firefish

 

[TitansFan32]

They are an amazing starter fish for a cycling tank or for someone who is just starting out in the hobby. Although some damsels can be very aggressive with tankmate so you should do good research on the fish you are looking to purchase and check how they will do with other animals.