What’s the lifespan of these types of fish?

[Zionas]

Hey everyone, for these kinds of smaller fish I am curious as to what their lifespan is:

1. Firefish (Red, Purple, Exquisite, Helfrichi’s)

2. Dartfish (Scissortail, Zebra, Blue Gudgeon etc.)

3. Blennies (Midas, Bicolor, Starry, Lawnmower, Tailspot, Molly Miller etc.)

4. Dottybacks

5. Basslets (Royal Gramma, Swissguard, Swales, Blackcap, Candy, Assessors etc.)

6. Gobies (Yellow Watchman, Randall’s, etc.)

7. Bangaii Cardinals





Among small fish I know Clowns have the most longevity. I’ve also heard of people having kept PJ Cardinals, some dwarf angels, and some damsels over 10 years. For wrasses I know Fairies usually live 7-8 with Flashers 5-6, Halichoeres 8-10 etc.

 

[ichthyogeek]

For Banggai Cardinals, I've read that they "burn out" of breeding ability by 3 years, but I've definitely kept them for at least 5 years

 

[Chef Mateo]

Honestly a lot of it depends on collection. If they are captive bread they should live longer. Wild caught ones IME tend to not live as long. They just don't adapt as well. Some of these fish you mentioned will probably live 5-10 yrs depending on species.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Typically 2-3 years but mainly dependent on tank conditions and diet

 

[Zionas]

Wow that’s really short.

 

[Haydn]

Wow that’s really short.

Why are you surprised, these fish are some of the smallest ones in the sea. What do you think is the lifespan of the average mouse or sparrow is?

 

[Sosuke]

Yellow watchman can live a while if provided the proper tank conditions and diet

 

[Zionas]

Browsing some old threads here I have seen a number of people who’ve kept the Watchman gobies for over 10 years, some dwarf angels and butterflies for over 10 years, PJ Cardinals for over 10, Royal Gramma to nearly 10 or a bit more than that, Halichoeres wrasses I’ve seen 7-9 and one guy kept his Melanurus for almost 14 year after. Clowns are known for being long-lived. Damsels I’ve seen a number of posters here having kept theirs for over 10 years.

Not sure about the Firefish, Dartfish, Dottybacks, and other smaller fish so would love to hear more about their lifespans.

 

[AcanthurusRex]

Longevity of a species can be estimated by the predation rate.
Dottybacks will most likely live longer because they are harder to catch while fish that hang in open are more likely to get eaten. Anthias, wrasses, gobies and the like are basically reef food.
Tangs have been documented to live decades, 37 years for a clown tang. I suspect that many of the larger fish live until a reef shark gets them at night.

 

[Angel_Anthias lover]

I dont mean to be rude, but at the end of the day i dont believe life span should matter when selecting fish. You probably dont want to get something that lives for a year or less, but like just enjoy the fish while you have it, you only live once, no point crossing out a fish just because its short lived if you like it very much. Most fish dont even live their natural life spans in tanks due to unforseen issues. Its not as if any of those fish are rare or irreplacebale (all be it not the same but they have similair sister species for the most part that could work as a replacement rather than replacing the same), if they were to pass on.

 

[mort]

I completely agree that lifespan is hard to accurately predict. Added to what has been said you also have to consider the age (often unknown) of the fish when we get them but also what you keep them with and how you keep them. If you had a dedicated firefish nano tank where it got optimum feeding with no competition then it would likely live a longer life than if it had to compete with a large amount of other fish.

Part of how you keep them is if you try to keep them in groups or on their own. I know from personal experience that dottybacks and bangaii's often breed themselves to an early grave, with males only lasting a few years as opposed 8 years plus if kept singly. Other fish don't seem to be affected by constantly breeding like clowns or watchman gobies, so it's a tricky subject.

Small fish are near the bottom of the food chain so not designed to live a long life but some can. I don't know the average lifespan of a coral goby in the wild but I've had one live 9-10 years which is very surprising but not uncommon. The more sedentary the fish is as well, the longer we expect them to live, it's why energetic flasher wrasse don't last to long after transitioning to male.

 

[Zionas]

This is why I feel it’s important to buy most wrasses (Fairies, Flashers, Halichoeres) as females, juveniles, or transitioning males because a terminal male may only have 2-3 years left to live.

Coral Goby- You mean the Yellow Clown Goby?

 

[mort]

Coral Goby- You mean the Yellow Clown Goby?

Yes. In the wild they would probably only live 18-36 months but they are potentially far longer lived in aquaria.

Lifespan is certainly something to consider but not everything. You risk missing out on a lot of interesting species when ruling them out that way. Flasher wrasses might not meet your criteria but I'd far rather have an active colourfull fish for a short time, than a long lived but less active/entertaining species like most cardinals.
I'm guilty of exclusion myself. I love cleaner gobies and the smaller goby species like Christmas gobies but they don't have very long lives and cost a fortune here, so I no longer consider them which is a shame.

 

[MnFish1]

Yes. In the wild they would probably only live 18-36 months but they are potentially far longer lived in aquaria.

Lifespan is certainly something to consider but not everything. You risk missing out on a lot of interesting species when ruling them out that way. Flasher wrasses might not meet your criteria but I'd far rather have an active colourfull fish for a short time, than a long lived but less active/entertaining species like most cardinals.
I'm guilty of exclusion myself. I love cleaner gobies and the smaller goby species like Christmas gobies but they don't have very long lives and cost a fortune here, so I no longer consider them which is a shame.

Agree - however, given the prices of fish these days, I can see where some people would want to have longer-lived specimens.