Anthias for my 120g.

[awestruck]

I want to buy a shoal of anthias. My fish stock will be the following:

2- ocellaris (sp?) clowns
1- pj cardinal
1- 2" longhorn cowfish (which is going to get large)

Tank and equipment:

120g. 4' x 2' x 2'
Barr skimmer
58g. refugium
60g. sump
Sandbed--not sure yet--might go w/just a smattering of sand on the bottom so it doesn't look bare.

My goal is a shoal of gentle anthias (so Juliet, my cowfish, doesn't get stressed). And, I cannot afford $70.00 per fish.

Please give me your suggestions.

Thanks.

[CarlC]

A group of 4 or 5 lyretails or bartletts would fit nice if your looking something common and colorfull. If you looking for something that will stand out and be differant then think about the questions below.

Are you looking for an out going very active species? Are you able to do a 1 or 2 month QT to train for captive feeding and do a defluking? What are your usual foods? Water flow? Do you have any prior experience with anthias?

There are lots of nice smaller species. Some fit better into a mixed community tank with bigger active fish than others. Some never learn to eat flake or pellets. There are many species available that aren't overly priced but take some work to get used to captive life.

Carl

[awestruck]

Thanks for responding Carl. :) I'm looking for a more "quiet", gentle species so that Juliet doesn't get stressed. I am unable, at this time, to train for captive feeding and I don't know what defluking is.

I feed my fish fresh shrimp from the grocery store, mysis shrimp, blood worms, and sometimes krill. In addition to those foods Juliet is given broccoli, green macro algae, and peas. I don't feed pellets or flake food.

I am not sure of the flow yet. The system will be a closed loop with an Amp 3000 pump. I may also use my canister filter so that the spray bar provides extra surface agitation. I'm not sure if I need the surface agitation, or if the canister would be more a pain than without it, so at this time I am undecided. And, if I need powerheads I have a choice of 5: 3 maxi jets and 2 koralias.

[Gary Majchrzak]

something to keep in mind:
Anthias like water motion and lots of it.
Juliet doesn't ;)

[awestruck]

Thanks Gary, darn it all, that NEVER occurred to me. Well, I think an Anthias shoal should be dismissed at this time then. You know, Juliet is only 2" but she is going to get big. That little bugger, I'm so attached to her already. She eats out of my hand...how cool is that!!! :D

So guys, do you have any suggestions? I was considering a tang if not a shoal of Anthias, but will that be too much for Juliet? I just saw a picture of a chocolate tang, and oh my gosh, they are beautiful. Obviously, since my tank is only 4' long, I would need one of the smallest tangs ever created.

Thanks for helping me. :)

[Gary Majchrzak]

I suggest looking into Flasher and/or Fairy Wrasses.
Most are more resilient than Anthias and there are some unbelievably colored ones being imported nowadays.
They don't need the special feeding attention that Anthias require, either.

[CarlC]

Defluking- I should have just said deworming. Alot of anthias come with flukes and some come with a fluke that is specific to anthias.

The biggest issue with lesser kept anthias is either they eat or they don't. They really need the quiet time in isolation to adjust.

I would stick with lyretails or bartletts for now. Lyretails would be my first choice out of the two. They both will eat just about anything and usually adjust quicker then most. Neither are outwardly aggressive to other fish's. They are usually more curious then aggressive. They might be an issue at feeding time if Juliet is a passive feeder since they are usually very active darting all over the place.

As long as you have good flow for them to feed from and swim in you'll be ok. The shallow water high energy species are like tangs in that they need good O2 rich water flowing over their gills to thrive.

Carl

[CarlC]

Great suggestion Gary!

Carl

[awestruck]

Thanks Carl and Gary :)

So Carl, Gary said the Anthias need lots of water movement...

I believe my water is rich in oxygen due to the great surface agitation. And, Juliet doesn't mind the surface moving, she just doesn't want to get blown around when investigating the rest of the tank.

Guys, do flasher wrasses shoal? Or, what about royal grammas?

[Gary Majchrzak]

Royal Gramma will stay mainly hidden in rockwork.
Flasher and Fairy Wrasses don't "shoal", but they'll stay out in the wide open and put on a spectacular display every evening.

[CarlC]

Flow is very important. The flow needed IMO is not the chaotic crazy flow needed to sustain a SPS reef. Stream pumps work the best. They give a flow that is evenly distributed in a wide pattern. Great water movement that isn't concentrated so it blows fish off course works best.

I run two Sieo 1500's at opposite ends of the tank that are pointed towards the front middle. This creates area's of upper flow that are more straight on. As the currents settle out in the middle and lower sections they have slowed considerably and are more swirling.

The only shallow water anthias I keep are dispar. They hang out higher in the tank where the flow is stronger. The deeper water species are low to middle where the flow is slower but still strong enough to keep them happy.

Like Gary suggested you might just be better off with a harem of flasher or fairy wrasse's. Some of the McCoskers and filamentosus coming in lately have been very nice!

Carl

[awestruck]

Thank you VERY much for your help Carl and Gary, it's much appreciated.

When the time comes, flasher wrasses it is.

Have a great rest of the weekend! :)

[Aadler]

I agree with the mccosker comments!

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/92332mccoskerbetter-med.jpg

He has even picked up more red on top now, and the blues are much darker under the halides. I would love to add a female for him, but I ordered him from LA and they had no females at the time, 3 days later... females :c(. No way im spending 70$ on shipping in one week heh...