Firefish Care

[Wanabe Reefer]

Ok so I just picked up a firefish from my LFS and had some questions.

I bought mysis shrimp for feeding but how much and how often do I feed it?

Are there any other fishes/inverts/corals that firefish dont mingle well with?

Are there any other special needs a firefish might have that a begginer reefer like me might not know about?

any help is appreciated :D

[IanInDC]

No grammas. Those two fish don't get along very well...

[LauraCline]

I second that DC, didn't know and my grammas killed a purple firefish.

[prugs]

Firefish don't mingle well if they are the same sex from my experience. I have 2 males that keep their distance in the tank. And on female that makes her rounds between the 2 males.

[chujai]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9276417#post9276417 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by prugs
Firefish don't mingle well if they are the same sex from my experience. I have 2 males that keep their distance in the tank. And on female that makes her rounds between the 2 males.

what a **** haha thats awsome.

normal for them to just lay on the ground? i just got one and i find when the lights go out and just moon lights on they like to lie down... that normal too?

[Stealth70mde]

Hi,

Firefish usually hide somewhere in the Live rock when the lights go out.

I had a pair of purple firefish and I placed a LR that had an arch shape bottom on the sand. They seemed pretty happy in this spot for one year before my tank crashed during my vacations in early January...

They never messed up with anything in my tank appart from cleaning some sand from their little place from time to time.

BTW, like you, firefish were my first salt water fish ever. They are tough and are not prone to Ich or diseases because they do not have scales. They have instead somekind of body slime to protect them which make them very resistant to usual diseases usually encountered in our reef tanks with other species.

I hope to get some again eventually as they were great even though calm fishes.

Marc.

[Illuminati]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9284461#post9284461 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chujai
what a **** haha thats awsome.

normal for them to just lay on the ground? i just got one and i find when the lights go out and just moon lights on they like to lie down... that normal too?

Mine does that to, lays right between the glass and a rock when the lights go off.

[techigirl78]

Be careful, they jump. I'd at least cover the tank with something for a short time if you haven't already done so.

[beatle]

Wow, I'd never heard that about the RGs. I was planning on one for my 90 (with firefish already).

[mike89t]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9286647#post9286647 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Stealth70mde
BTW, like you, firefish were my first salt water fish ever. They are tough and are not prone to Ich or diseases because they do not have scales. They have instead somekind of body slime to protect them which make them very resistant to usual diseases usually encountered in our reef tanks with other species.


I've had two firefish and both of them were easily infected with Ich. I think you are talking about the Mandarin gobies which have the slime coat to protect them.

[Grey Reefer]

Firefish are a great beginner's fish. They can get easily bullied by other more aggressive fish and they do jump so a tank cover wouldn't hurt. My firefish disappears into the rock work at night and reappears in the morning. They spook easy too especially if you make sudden movements around the tank.

[Stealth70mde]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9291228#post9291228 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mike89t
I've had two firefish and both of them were easily infected with Ich. I think you are talking about the Mandarin gobies which have the slime coat to protect them.

You are right about that. My mistake. Mine never contracted any disease during the year I had them before they died in my tank crash... (Filter stopped during my vacations) :(

Cheers.

[beatle]

Any more info re: the incompatibility of firefish and royal grammas?

[DylanE]

they both compete for the same kind of hiding places, which is what i think does it, but thats just a guess. i had one of each before a tank crash, and the RG gave the firefish hell.

[beatle]

What size tank did you keep them in?

[ambaratur]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9302592#post9302592 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by beatle
Any more info re: the incompatibility of firefish and royal grammas?


I have a Purple Firefish, Regular Firefish, and a Royal Gramma in my 125. They each have taken to a particular hiding spot and do not have much for open hostilities.

I added the firefish individually before adding the gramma... also the Purple firefish did try to bully the regular firefish in the beginning but that was short lived.

Just my experience - but my tank does have a lot of hiding places so they each have their own territory.

[karid]

I had 2 med wrasse, 2 chromis, and a firefish in my 90g for a long time. After about a year of peaceful cohabitation in the 90g, the 2 chromis (or maybe just one of them) decided to start harassing my firefish. They harassed the firefish so much he wouldn't come out of his hidey hole. I assume he starved in there and died. It was sad.

They are really sensitive to agressive fish. Maybe if I had a bigger fish in there to scare the chromis, they wouldn't have picked on the firefish.

[JoeyK@OCMD]

Firefish and Grammas: like most fish that are supposedly incompatible, can be housed together in a reef, if introduced in a sterile enviroment like a QT tank. I only offer one place of refuge for each fish being housed together initially. In this example I have three fire fish, and a royal gramma being housed in a space roughly 1' x 1' x 2.5'. There is one pvc tube for each fish to hide in. If well fed and left for the appropriate QT duration period they will do fine together in the reef tank. I have used this method many times and with great success.

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f92/JoeyayOCMD/gramma_firefish.jpg

[maxdout]

firefish are pretty easy to care for. i feed mine 2 times a day, in the am when i got to work and at night when i get home. not much though since he is my only fish. i feed him mysid and cyclopeze for now...
i'm hoping i can get him on a home brewed mix.

heres a pic of him
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d35/txong_yang/IMG_2969.jpg

[TheSaltwaterGuy]

I agree with you Joey. I have had a Royal Gramma for about 3 months now and just added a pair of Firefish and they are doing great. They keep their distance but have been close together before but never mingled.

[sunfishh]

Great looking firefish maxdout