Tilefish question

[cba191]

I don't see them mentioned very often, but really want to get a pair for my soon to be ready tank. Is it a hardiness issue?

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Different species differ in relative hardiness. All will try to jump out, and many succeed. I’ve never kept them as a pair, so I can’t say how they would do.

There is a lengthy thread here:

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/show-off-your-tilefish.875812/

 

[cba191]

Different species differ in relative hardiness. All will try to jump out, and many succeed. I’ve never kept them as a pair, so I can’t say how they would do.

There is a lengthy thread here:

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/show-off-your-tilefish.875812/

thank you.
Does a deeper tank impact jumping at all?

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

thank you.
Does a deeper tank impact jumping at all?

No - they need a good lid with all gaps covered. I’ve had them jump out of a 40” deep tank.

 

[christinna77]

How big of a tank? A lot of sources say 50 gallons is the minimum, but I keep my skunk in 75g and he uses all of it. Honestly, I think he'll be even happier once I upgrade to 120g.

Mine is a very active fish. Ideally I feed small portions 4 to 5 times a day, similar to anthias. Mine eventually started accepting dry food, but he still strongly prefers frozen. Make sure you have a very tight heavy fitting lid. Seriously, my yellow tilefish managed to lift part of my lid and jumped out. They also need deep sand bed, lots of caves, overhangs, ledges, and rockwork they can dig under. Mine has basically turned my tank into a whole tunnel system.

Peaceful tankmates are really important too. Mine will panic and slam into the lid when it gets chased too much. I've had to rehome fish because of him. They don't handle aggression at all, scare pretty easily, and are sensitive to light from my experience. I cover the side of my tank at night, as mine hates the light coming from my small desk lamp and monitor after lights out. If I don't, he'll just hover in the corner staring at me, reminding me it's time to sleep, lol.

What else... maintenance is pretty interesting with these guys. Mine is always ready to "help" whenever I put my hand in the tank, and I have to be really careful about leaving the tank uncovered.

I've also noticed that different tilefish tend to use different parts of the tank. Skunks and purples usually stay more in the mid to upper levels. My yellow, and from what I've seen, Oreni, seem to prefer hovering closer to the bottom. Those might be a little easier to keep, but all of them can get startled and jump.

And one more thing. I'm not sure if I just got unlucky, but both of my tilefish came in with flukes. They handled prazi and copper well (just not combined). Definitely quarantine them and add them both at the same time - keeping a pair should help with their nervousness.

 

[cba191]

How big of a tank? A lot of sources say 50 gallons is the minimum, but I keep my skunk in 75g and he uses all of it. Honestly, I think he'll be even happier once I upgrade to 120g.

Mine is a very active fish. Ideally I feed small portions 4 to 5 times a day, similar to anthias. Mine eventually started accepting dry food, but he still strongly prefers frozen. Make sure you have a very tight heavy fitting lid. Seriously, my yellow tilefish managed to lift part of my lid and jumped out. They also need deep sand bed, lots of caves, overhangs, ledges, and rockwork they can dig under. Mine has basically turned my tank into a whole tunnel system.

Peaceful tankmates are really important too. Mine will panic and slam into the lid when it gets chased too much. I've had to rehome fish because of him. They don't handle aggression at all, scare pretty easily, and are sensitive to light from my experience. I cover the side of my tank at night, as mine hates the light coming from my small desk lamp and monitor after lights out. If I don't, he'll just hover in the corner staring at me, reminding me it's time to sleep, lol.

What else... maintenance is pretty interesting with these guys. Mine is always ready to "help" whenever I put my hand in the tank, and I have to be really careful about leaving the tank uncovered.

I've also noticed that different tilefish tend to use different parts of the tank. Skunks and purples usually stay more in the mid to upper levels. My yellow, and from what I've seen, Oreni, seem to prefer hovering closer to the bottom. Those might be a little easier to keep, but all of them can get startled and jump.

And one more thing. I'm not sure if I just got unlucky, but both of my tilefish came in with flukes. They handled prazi and copper well (just not combined). Definitely quarantine them and add them both at the same time - keeping a pair should help with their nervousness.

Thank you. They will be going in a 150g. Basically a taller 120.

 

[Sdbuehler1]

I have kept two purple tilefish in my 180 gal and they swim at the surface all day and then cuddle together in a cave at the bottom at night. They’re quite odd fish but do add some interest to the tank and have beautiful coloring.

 

[Privateye]

I've had pretty good luck with skunk tilefish and purple tilefish. I've kept two purples at a time in a 160 gallon tank and they did great. They definitely love to jump though. And they are extremely active.

However, the flashing tilefish....I've never been able to get one to live more than about a year. They are a lot more skittish, and they seem more delicate. Plus the color changing you want to see is produced by stress. A happy one will be tan in color.