Stocking List and opinion on reef angelfish

[Bucrob]

My LFS has had a golden angelfish for sale in her reef tank for the past 3 months at least. It has been a model citizen and has not had any problems with nibbling at corals. I want the golden angelfish but want to make sure that its a good choice over the coral beauty or flame angel. I personally don't like the colors of the coral beauty and don't want to take the risk with a flame angel after hearing horror stories of them taking out peoples $200 sps corals. This is the stocking list in a 130g tank, 4ft, 2ft, 2ft. May be a bit ambitous but this is just a general idea.

Yellow Tang
Blue Tang (already in tank)
Tomini Tang
One-Spot Foxface
Golden Angelfish/Coral Beauty
Clownfish pair (already in tank)
6 Green Chromis
Yellow Coris Wrasse
Naokos Fairy Wrasse
(eventually, added later) Bluestar Leopard Wrasse
Yellow Watchman Goby
Red Scooter Blenny (weaned onto prepared food and already in tank)
(Added Later) Copperband Butterflyfish

 

[sgdnycct]

From what I’ve read and experienced there’s always a risk with an angel. I have Biota CB and so far no nibbling but that could change. I’ve read plenty of stories where people have any of these angels for years with no problems then suddenly it all changes.

 

[littlefoxx]

My LFS has had a golden angelfish for sale in her reef tank for the past 3 months at least. It has been a model citizen and has not had any problems with nibbling at corals. I want the golden angelfish but want to make sure that its a good choice over the coral beauty or flame angel. I personally don't like the colors of the coral beauty and don't want to take the risk with a flame angel after hearing horror stories of them taking out peoples $200 sps corals. This is the stocking list in a 130g tank, 4ft, 2ft, 2ft. May be a bit ambitous but this is just a general idea.

Yellow Tang
Blue Tang (already in tank)
Tomini Tang
One-Spot Foxface
Golden Angelfish/Coral Beauty
Clownfish pair (already in tank)
6 Green Chromis
Yellow Coris Wrasse
Naokos Fairy Wrasse
(eventually, added later) Bluestar Leopard Wrasse
Yellow Watchman Goby
Red Scooter Blenny (weaned onto prepared food and already in tank)
(Added Later) Copperband Butterflyfish

3 tangs is a lot for a 4 foot tank, they will get aggressive as they get older. Blue tang will outgrow that tank eventually just FYI. Foxfaces have been known to eat corals, same with the CBBs. I had a golden desrf angel (looks like a red coral beauty, I think thats the one you were talking about?) and he ate all kinds of corals.

 

[Bucrob]

3 tangs is a lot for a 4 foot tank, they will get aggressive as they get older. Blue tang will outgrow that tank eventually just FYI. Foxfaces have been known to eat corals, same with the CBBs. I had a golden desrf angel (looks like a red coral beauty, I think thats the one you were talking about?) and he ate all kinds of corals.

I bought the tank used and the person who had it before me had a purple, yellow, and white tail bristletooth tang all coexisting in that tank for years. I am aware of the blue tang most likely outgrowing the tank but that won’t occur for a while as she’s only about 2 inches big right now. Attached is a picture of the golden angelfish in question

 

[The_Bro]

Angelfish are a risk. They seem to nip anything that they might see as edible.
Angel randomly swims buy hey a torch lets see if i can eat it "Nip". Hey an Acan "Nip" nope cant eat that.
Just my experience anyways. Mine seemed to constantly bothering my corals, to the point I decided to get rid of it.

 

[littlefoxx]

I bought the tank used and the person who had it before me had a purple, yellow, and white tail bristletooth tang all coexisting in that tank for years. I am aware of the blue tang most likely outgrowing the tank but that won’t occur for a while as she’s only about 2 inches big right now. Attached is a picture of the golden angelfish in question

Yep thats the one I had that loved to eat corals

 

[Bucrob]

Yep thats the one I had that loved to eat corals

I forgot to mention that its also a biota one, so aquacultured and raised purely on pellets and mysis + whatever it could find in LFS's tank

 

[sgdnycct]

Yep thats the one I had that loved to eat corals

I forgot to mention that its also a biota one, so aquacultured and raised purely on pellets and mysis + whatever it could find in LFS's tank

Any angel can start nipping- it’s their natural behavior. It’s a risk that’s probably lower with a captive bred but no one can tell you how the angel’s personality will change. I know it’s not the answer you want to hear. Keep it well fed with a variety of foods provided multiple times a day to help improve your chances.

 

[RobertK]

That is a beautiful fish! Did you read the details on the Biota website? Is your tank mature and stable? If so it might be worth the chance IMO. FWIW I have 2 Biota dwarf angels (CB, bicolor) in a 60 gallon LPS tank and they don't bother anything or anyone.

Golden Angelfish

Centropyge aurantia - The Golden Angelfish is a dwarf angelfish species with a tiger stripe pattern on a bright golden orange body and a blue eye-ring. This species is not commonly seen in captivity, and wild caught specimens are delicate. Captive bred Golden Angelfish are rare and highly sought...

shop.thebiotagroup.com

 

[littlefoxx]

I forgot to mention that its also a biota one, so aquacultured and raised purely on pellets and mysis + whatever it could find in LFS's tank

Yeah issue is they have never seen a coral before. So they could see a coral and be like whats that, try it, and be like “oh me likey!” And boom you got a coral eater. Always a risk with angels! This is why I keep a fowlr. I love my emperor and girdled but no way would I trust them with coral. I put a small frag in to test them and it was eaten within hours

 

[Bucrob]

That is a beautiful fish! Did you read the details on the Biota website? Is your tank mature and stable? If so it might be worth the chance IMO. FWIW I have 2 Biota dwarf angels (CB, bicolor) in a 60 gallon LPS tank and they don't bother anything or anyone.

Golden Angelfish

Centropyge aurantia - The Golden Angelfish is a dwarf angelfish species with a tiger stripe pattern on a bright golden orange body and a blue eye-ring. This species is not commonly seen in captivity, and wild caught specimens are delicate. Captive bred Golden Angelfish are rare and highly sought...

shop.thebiotagroup.com

Tanks been running for about a month now, LFS said that she just wasn’t doing well in her tank due to all the competition from her established fish. LFS said that she would give a refund if she did die on us due to the circumstances. The owner has helped me throughout my entire journey and has never mislead me even telling me no multiple times. Plus I didn’t pay the insane price Biota has it listed for

 

[Cthulukelele]

A healthy angelfish nips everything. It doesnt necessary devour everything, but biologically it's supposed to peck at pretty much every rocky surface of your tank. They rarely DEVOUR coral, but if polyp extension and maximally happy coral is a primary concern to you, they're usually at least transient coral "tasters." Both of mine have been, but they definitely more prefer soft coral and fleshy lps/clam

 

[RobertK]

Tanks been running for about a month now, LFS said that she just wasn’t doing well in her tank due to all the competition from her established fish. LFS said that she would give a refund if she did die on us due to the circumstances. The owner has helped me throughout my entire journey and has never mislead me even telling me no multiple times. Plus I didn’t pay the insane price Biota has it listed for

Sounds like you got her already and got her for a good price. Congrats and good luck with her! Lets see some pics!

 

[Bucrob]

Yeah issue is they have never seen a coral before. So they could see a coral and be like whats that, try it, and be like “oh me likey!” And boom you got a coral eater. Always a risk with angels! This is why I keep a fowlr. I love my emperor and girdled but no way would I trust them with coral. I put a small frag in to test them and it was eaten within hours

I would love to have a FOWLR tank along with a reef tank but I prefer the corals than fish so

Sounds like you got her already and got her for a good price. Congrats and good luck with her! Lets see some pics!

 

[RobertK]

Can't see her real well in those pics but let us know how she does over the next few weeks!

 

[littlefoxx]

I would love to have a FOWLR tank along with a reef tank but I prefer the corals than fish so

Awe tiny baby!

 

[kboogie]

I would love to have a FOWLR tank along with a reef tank but I prefer the corals than fish so

It is a statistics game. It is not a binary item where 100% of the type Angelfish of species A will not eat coral, and 100% of the time Angelfish of species B will eat coral. It is all the "likelihood" of it happening.

I find understanding why some fish are more likely to eat coral, and others do not, helps in making the right decision for oneself. Additionally, determining if you are prioritizing your coral or your fish helps in the decision.

If having perfect coral health is the most important thing for you, then I would strongly recommend avoiding all angelfish because there is a greater than 10% chance that any angelfish will nip at coral.

If you are OK with the occasional nip at your coral, then there are some angelfish that are far less likely to eat coral than others. At the top of the list of angelfish who are least likely to eat coral are the Genicanthus genus of angelfish. This genus includes the Bellus, Japanese Swallowtail, Lemark, and Wantaenabi. They are less likely to eat coral because they are from deeper water, where there is not enough light to support most corals; as a result, they naturally develop a diet that does not include coral. In my experience, they have a less than 20% chance of eating coral. The next best angelfish genus that is unlikely to eat coral are angelfish of the genus Centropyge, aka Dwarf Angelfish. This includes the Coral Beauty, Lemonpeel, Flame, and Golden Angelfish. In my experience, these have a less than 35% chance of eating coral. I also find the sole member of the genus Pygoplites, the Regal Angelfish, is also less then 35% likely to eat coral. All other angelfish, for the most part, are very likely to eat coral (better than 50%). You will find people who have an Emperor, or Queen, or Blueface angel, which they claim doesn't eat coral, but these specific fish are the exception to the rule. Most of these fish will almost always eat LPS because that is part of their diet in the wild and some will peck at SPS.

It is important to remember that the natural behavior of a healthy angelfish is to peck at things that potentially are food and determine if it is something the fish likes or not. It is to be expected that a fish may nip at a coral as a normal test. The key is whether they develop a taste for coral or do they have to eat coral because they are not being kept stuffed, typically out of fear of raising nitrates or phosphates. I find 90% of your problems with fish aggression and coral eating can be solved by feeding them frequently and heavily. A fat and happy fish doesn't have to eat coral to survive.

When I had my tank with coral, my centropyges would nip at my clams so much that the clams would rarely open and eventually die. This is normal behavior for Dwarf angels.

I personally hated the large restrictions my coral put on my fish selection, so I started a large FOWLR to have all the fish I really wanted. I eventually took down the coral tank because it just required too much of me. At the time, I was building my company, and it wasn't fair to my business partners not give them all my energy. One day, I plan on building out a large reef tank, but my FOWLR is providing me with too much joy! It is amazing the joy you can have when you practice "biosecurity".

 

[Bucrob]

Maybe some better pictures. Lights are a bit budget still as I got the tank used so they can’t save my schedule and don’t want to mess it up and not remember .

Can't see her real well in those pics but let us know how she does over the next few weeks!

 

[Bucrob]

Also apparently now my turbo snails decided to lay eggs…

 

[tripdad]

My comment is more on your proposed stocking list. With that group it will be very important "how" and in "what order" you add those fish. I would add all the tangs together and last. (I see you already have the blue) as they will most likely be territorial. I definitely would not add a CBB into a tank with three tangs and an angel in it unless its a larger tank. I would get it in before them if at all. Again, all fish are individuals so there are no absolutes. Good or bad.