What is the most peaceful and pretty damsel fish?

[tripdad]

Most of the time these fish, as well as others, get a bad rap that they don't deserve. Understanding how they live in the wild will give you a guide to keeping them in a tank. They are NOT solitary fish. They are normally found in large aggregations and develop a hierarchy. IMO the key to success is to recreate this in our tanks. By keeping them in larger groups of damsels they do not develop that little fish backed into a corner attitude. They need a lot of little holes to sleep in, to call their spot. But they will not develop that nasty territory defense if they can't claim one. By keeping them in groups they have to split their aggression in many directions and adopt more of a live and let live attitude. I think they evoke images of a reef like maybe only a few fish can. Such as Anthias, chromis, or maybe swarms of butterflies and tangs. I vote yes on the damsel!

 

[45ZoaGarden]

Granted , this does not get rid of aggression. It just increases aggression to the rest of the school. With a school of fish like that, they now have the means to gang up on others

Most of the time these fish, as well as others, get a bad rap that they don't deserve. Understanding how they live in the wild will give you a guide to keeping them in a tank. They are NOT solitary fish. They are normally found in large aggregations and develop a hierarchy. IMO the key to success is to recreate this in our tanks. By keeping them in larger groups of damsels they do not develop that little fish backed into a corner attitude. They need a lot of little holes to sleep in, to call their spot. But they will not develop that nasty territory defense if they can't claim one. By keeping them in groups they have to split their aggression in many directions and adopt more of a live and let live attitude. I think they evoke images of a reef like maybe only a few fish can. Such as Anthias, chromis, or maybe swarms of butterflies and tangs. I vote yes on the damsel!

 

[bdesign]

Most of the time these fish, as well as others, get a bad rap that they don't deserve. Understanding how they live in the wild will give you a guide to keeping them in a tank. They are NOT solitary fish. They are normally found in large aggregations and develop a hierarchy. IMO the key to success is to recreate this in our tanks. By keeping them in larger groups of damsels they do not develop that little fish backed into a corner attitude. They need a lot of little holes to sleep in, to call their spot. But they will not develop that nasty territory defense if they can't claim one. By keeping them in groups they have to split their aggression in many directions and adopt more of a live and let live attitude. I think they evoke images of a reef like maybe only a few fish can. Such as Anthias, chromis, or maybe swarms of butterflies and tangs. I vote yes on the damsel!

Although your thoughts are completely sensible and are most likely true for the majority (?), my disdain is due to having a very different experience than what you describe.
Four Azures, PLENTY of room, and LOADS of holes/crevices... these “sweeties” still find it necessary to travel the entire length of the tank to pester and agitate tank mates.

They even travel three feet from their “main home” to do the back up/tail twitch/lunge to a Nardo Starfish! SMH

I just want others to know the POSSIBILITY of having a terrible and stressful situation.
I wish I had known.

I have seven tangs that cause less commotion than these guys; they’re like sweat bees... they never stop.

 

[tripdad]

Granted , this does not get rid of aggression. It just increases aggression to the rest of the school. With a school of fish like that, they now have the means to gang up on others

That has not been my experience in over 30 years of keeping saltwater fish. The key is to keep them all on their toes. No one gets to be king.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

That has not been my experience in over 30 years of keeping saltwater fish. The key is to keep them all on their toes. No one gets to be king.

Okay aqua man ;Hilarious

 

[45ZoaGarden]

I suppose a damsel would be less aggressive in a tank full of lion fish. They’d only try to beat one up once ;Hilarious

 

[tripdad]

Although your thoughts are completely sensible and are most likely true for the majority (?), my disdain is due to having a very different experience than what you describe.
Four Azures, PLENTY of room, and LOADS of holes/crevices... these “sweeties” still find it necessary to travel the entire length of the tank to pester and agitate tank mates.

They even travel three feet from their “main home” to do the back up/tail twitch/lunge to a Nardo Starfish! SMH

I just want others to know the POSSIBILITY of having a terrible and stressful situation.
I wish I had known.

I have seven tangs that cause less commotion than these guys; they’re like sweat bees... they never stop.

This is a very common experience your having. By giving them "plenty" of room they can claim their turf. When packed in more densely they cannot do this. They are forced to get along. This is just my opinion from my experience. I think some fish have to be "packed in" to get them to act naturally. Not all fish, but certain ones occur this way in nature.

 

[shred5]

No damsel is peaceful. Dont fool yourself. If you want damsels stick with agressive fish only imo.

That is not true at all..

Some of the Chrysiptera family are peaceful.

This thread is full of bad info.. Some species in this family are as bad as you get and for a small fish can be extremely aggressive while others are very peaceful..

 

[45ZoaGarden]

Most of the time these fish, as well as others, get a bad rap that they don't deserve. Understanding how they live in the wild will give you a guide to keeping them in a tank. They are NOT solitary fish. They are normally found in large aggregations and develop a hierarchy. IMO the key to success is to recreate this in our tanks. By keeping them in larger groups of damsels they do not develop that little fish backed into a corner attitude. They need a lot of little holes to sleep in, to call their spot. But they will not develop that nasty territory defense if they can't claim one. By keeping them in groups they have to split their aggression in many directions and adopt more of a live and let live attitude. I think they evoke images of a reef like maybe only a few fish can. Such as Anthias, chromis, or maybe swarms of butterflies and tangs. I vote yes on the damsel!

This is a very common experience your having. By giving them "plenty" of room they can claim their turf. When packed in more densely they cannot do this. They are forced to get along. This is just my opinion from my experience. I think some fish have to be "packed in" to get them to act naturally. Not all fish, but certain ones occur this way in nature.

But you just said they need plenty of holes etc to themselves so they don’t have a “little fish backed into a corner attitude” now you’re saying we need to take all their space? Are you confusing yourself at this point? Lol

 

[bdesign]

This is a very common experience your having. By giving them "plenty" of room they can claim their turf. When packed in more densely they cannot do this. They are forced to get along. This is just my opinion from my experience. I think some fish have to be "packed in" to get them to act naturally. Not all fish, but certain ones occur this way in nature.

How would I go about getting these four to “pack” their bags? lol

I kid... thanks for the tip!

 

[45ZoaGarden]

These fish are NOT peaceful by nature. Go dive or snorkel on a reef full of damlsels. It’s pretty funny to watch how mad they get. If you want to keep some it’s best to put them in a tank with fish that can hold their own. Fish that can eat the damsels are best because they don’t tolerate being bullied by an underdog ;Hilarious

 

[tripdad]

Re read my post. I said they need plenty of holes to sleep in, to call their hole at night. If you look at a reef these fish are usually found around coral heads. When disturbed they dart into it for shelter. So yes, lots of fish, small space lots of holes to hide in. Once again, this is all just my opinion. Take it or leave it.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

Do you really want this every time you try to clean the tank? LOL

 

[45ZoaGarden]

You said they get aggressive when they claim their territory

Re read my post. I said they need plenty of holes to sleep in, to call their hole at night. If you look at a reef these fish are usually found around coral heads. When disturbed they dart into it for shelter. So yes, lots of fish, small space lots of holes to hide in. Once again, this is all just my opinion. Take it or leave it.

 

[nereefpat]

Do you really want this every time you try to clean the tank? LOL

What species is that? Is it a Springer's, Talbot, yellow tail like suggested?

 

[shred5]

These fish are NOT peaceful by nature. Go dive or snorkel on a reef full of damlsels. It’s pretty funny to watch how mad they get. If you want to keep some it’s best to put them in a tank with fish that can hold their own. Fish that can eat the damsels are best because they don’t tolerate being bullied by an underdog ;Hilarious

Does not matter how many times you post it you are wrong. It is a large group of fish and not all are aggressive.
Do a little research and you will find that out.

Damselfish - Yes, Sane Damsels Do Exist!

Damselfish get a really bad rap in the reef-keeping hobby, however, there are sane ones that exist that have that trademark damsel blue. In this post, I discuss less aggressive Damelfish and how to introduce them to your tank.

aquariumstoredepot.com

Chrysiptera Damsels: Info, Care Guide, Tank Mates, & More (With Pictures) | Animal World

Peaceful Chrysiptera damselfish that are every bit as beautiful as their relatives, make some of the best starter fish for beginners! The damselfish in the Chrysiptera genus are truly the prettiest of the bunch, but this genus is extremely variable in personality. Chrysiptera species like the...

animal-world.com

Not to mention the dozen of threads on R2R that talk about peaceful damsel fish.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

Does not matter how many times you post it you are wrong. It is a large group of fish and not all are aggressive.
Do a little research and you will find that out.

Damselfish - Yes, Sane Damsels Do Exist!

Damselfish get a really bad rap in the reef-keeping hobby, however, there are sane ones that exist that have that trademark damsel blue. In this post, I discuss less aggressive Damelfish and how to introduce them to your tank.

aquariumstoredepot.com

Chrysiptera Damsels: Info, Care Guide, Tank Mates, & More (With Pictures) | Animal World

Peaceful Chrysiptera damselfish that are every bit as beautiful as their relatives, make some of the best starter fish for beginners! The damselfish in the Chrysiptera genus are truly the prettiest of the bunch, but this genus is extremely variable in personality. Chrysiptera species like the...

animal-world.com

Not to mention the dozen of threads on R2R that talk about peaceful damsel fish.

Not to mention the dozens of threads saying they’re aggressive

 

[shred5]

Not to mention the dozens of threads saying they’re aggressive

By people who are generalizing, have not kept the peaceful ones or are keeping ones that are aggressive.

There are tons of people on the forums who parrot over and over things that are not true.
Allot of the species in this family are very aggressive, it does not mean they all are.

 

[bdesign]

Does not matter how many times you post it you are wrong. It is a large group of fish and not all are aggressive.
Do a little research and you will find that out.

Damselfish - Yes, Sane Damsels Do Exist!

Damselfish get a really bad rap in the reef-keeping hobby, however, there are sane ones that exist that have that trademark damsel blue. In this post, I discuss less aggressive Damelfish and how to introduce them to your tank.

aquariumstoredepot.com

Chrysiptera Damsels: Info, Care Guide, Tank Mates, & More (With Pictures) | Animal World

Peaceful Chrysiptera damselfish that are every bit as beautiful as their relatives, make some of the best starter fish for beginners! The damselfish in the Chrysiptera genus are truly the prettiest of the bunch, but this genus is extremely variable in personality. Chrysiptera species like the...

animal-world.com

Not to mention the dozen of threads on R2R that talk about peaceful damsel fish.

Obviously, some have positive experiences, but stereotypes are stereotypes for a reason.

The article doesn’t make sense to me - it asserts that DESPITE being very aggressive, biting hands, killing tank mates, etc. the REASONS to have them are; they eat any foods offered, are hardy, are blue and can live in a small tank... what??!?

IMO, I don’t understand that logic whatsoever...?

Regarding Chrysiptera Damselfish, the article also states: “They will bring the lively nature and action of damsels without the aggressiveness.”

From experience, absolutely NOT TRUE.

Not trying to be argumentative whatsoever to those that are immeasurably more knowledgeable than I am... just giving my experience.

Also, @tripdad... if @CyberGuy decides to add Damsels, just curious how many would constitute a large group (to alleviate/spread aggression) in his 120G?

 

[45ZoaGarden]

By people who are generalizing, have not kept the peaceful ones or are keeping ones that are aggressive.

There are tons of people on the forums who parrot over and over things that are not true.
Allot of the species in this family are very aggressive, it does not mean they all are.

Yes. But one specimen in a school being peaceful is a pretty small statistic