Who else wants a Moorish Idol

Mr. Limpid · May 4, 2018

The first time I saw this fish I wanted to add this to my tank. After tons of research and 20 years later I still don't have one. If you have one or had one, please tells about your experience. How old is it or how long did you have it. What did it eat? Did it get along with other tank mates? Who were it tank mates? Please don't leave out any details. Thanks from all of us who ever wanted one but never tried.

4FordFamily · May 4, 2018

Mr. Limpid said:
The first time I saw this fish I wanted to add this to my tank. After tons of research and 20 years later I still don't have one. If you have one or had one, please tells about your experience. How old is it or how long did you have it. What did it eat? Did it get along with other tank mates? Who were it tank mates? Please don't leave out any details. Thanks from all of us who ever wanted one but never tried.

https://www.reef2reef.com/ams/keeping-the-mysterious-moorish-idol.72/

I wrote an article on this!

looneywun · May 4, 2018

i had one before, had it with tangs clowns and angels. got along with everyone i got lucky and it was eating right off the bat. ate everything from mysis to nori. had it for a good 7 months and it sadly passed not sure why

Mr. Limpid · May 4, 2018

4FordFamily, great article. This pretty much the same information I've been reading for the past years and the reason I never tried one. I have a LFS that gets them in every so often, they look good and are eating, but I just no. I did talk to a guy from the east coast that had one and was feeding it sea weed that he would get fresh from the ocean. I don't remember how long it had survived but at the time it was doing well. Still would like to here if others out there who are trying or tried.

aherre07 · May 4, 2018

have one currently and have it with angels, tangs and other fish. eats very aggressively no matter what i feed whether its frozen, pellets or nori left on a clip during the day. I have only had it about a month now but have noticed that it has put on some girth. I look forward to seeing this fish in my tank for a long time as it has a great personality.

Mr. Limpid · May 4, 2018

aherre07 said:
have one currently and have it with angels, tangs and other fish. eats very aggressively no matter what i feed whether its frozen, pellets or nori left on a clip during the day. I have only had it about a month now but have noticed that it has put on some girth. I look forward to seeing this fish in my tank for a long time as it has a great personality.

glad to here there a brave people out their, please stay in touch.

Black Pearl · May 4, 2018

I have one for the last year and a half. eats everything especially acans and picks at my sps and has found some zoas he likes. he can be annoying at times because any new sps I put in the tank he has to taste

cracker · May 4, 2018

If I may, will a Moorish Idol be OK in a high flow tank? I need to reread 4 ford's

cracker · May 4, 2018

Well after rereading 2 or 3 paragraphs , I remembered that my skills are not up to keeping this fish long term. I wish You the best luck !
If 4Ford says it's tough to keep ?

4FordFamily · May 5, 2018

cracker said:
If I may, will a Moorish Idol be OK in a high flow tank? I need to reread 4 ford's

It may be, if there are less turbulent areas especially

Paul B · May 5, 2018

I have swam with these beauties 7 or 8 times in Hawaii (where they are the most common fish) and French Polynesia where they are also very common but not as much as Hawaii.
In much of Hawaii the reefs are bare and algae takes over much of it. It kind of looks like a gray, half dead algae but the Idols feast on this stuff as no other fish does.

In the rest of the South Pacific I have followed them many times and the reefs are much better there so Idols have other friends for company. There the Idols eat mostly a lime green sponge that I can't identify. As a matter of fact, that is all I saw them eat there. The male (I think) seems to find this sponge first and starts to eat it, then a few minutes later the "female" catches up to him and she eats while he goes off on another 100 yard circle of the reef looking for sponge.

I located a sponge in New York that grows on floating wooden docks at the surface and it is very easy to collect. It looks like giant human ears and is the same color. Like a light tan.
My last idol who lived almost 5 years would almost jump out of the water for it. I would collect it and freeze it as I couldn't keep it alive for more than a few days.

4FordFamily is correct, their metabolism must work very lousy and I believe that is because their food contains almost no nutrition which is why nothing else eats it.
I built a feeder which was a dish that sat on the bottom. There was a tube that went to the surface with a small funnel on top of it. Above that was an auto feeder which woud deposit fish oil soaked pellets into the funnel 6 or 7 times a day. A tiny bit of water was also pumped into the funnel and the pellets would go down into the dish where the Idol would wait for them. On every pass around the tank, he would inspect the dish.
His other meal was that sponge, clams, live worms and frozen banana. (yeah, I know!).
But after 5 years he just didn't seem to want to live any more and died which happens to many of them and we don't know why. My tank which is a 6' long 100 gallon tank seemed much to small for him so I may get another one soon as I am moving and will get a larger tank. I first have to see if I can collect that sponge in my new marina.
Now I "think" I can keep one. But if i don't keep it for at least 10 years, I will consider it a failure because if any fish dies before it's presumed lifespan, I consider it a failure.
This was Hawaii

This was Bora Bora in Tahiti,