anybody here have a butterfly fish?

[deejeff442]

i was looking at a couple butterfly fish as dont know if they will eat my shrimp or crabs.
i dont see too many people with these fish.
any reason why maybe most people have reef tanks?

[discusone]

just do a search for butterflys,RC members have a wealth of great info and personal experiance.And a good book wont hurt either.Look at older threads also,they make for great reading.

[deejeff442]

i have read alot of info on online stores to buy these fish most say add with caution.i just wanted some personal experiances.
not sure what a sessel invert is .

[LOTUS50GOD]

butterflys in the general term are not reef safe, there are a couple that can be kept in a reef, but only are only recommended for larger tanks.

I have a copperband in my 340. I was also told a kliens butterfly is also reefsafe. Other than those 2 I dont know of any others.

[eskymick]

Pyramid Butterfly is also considered reef safe.

[deejeff442]

i am not too concerned about corals .just the shrimp and crabs.i am going to add an angel also.hear leathers are angel safe but dont know if the butterfly will eat the leathers

[RyDoggsReef]

I currently have a bopperband butterfly. its been somewhat tough to take care of. Ive also hada racoon butterfly. the Racoon bfly is a great fish, it wont pick at your shrimp or crabs but with eat any aptasia, or bristle worms in your tank. It will also tear up any feather dusters if you have any. I would go with the racoon butterfly, it requires better water quality but its one of the easiest butterflies to take care of

[rssjsb]

I hate the term "reef safe," precisely because people use it interchangeably to refer to fish that can't be trusted with corals and fish that are coral-safe, but will eat shrimps, snails, or crabs. Ordinarily, when people say butterflies are not "reef safe," I think it is because they are known to eat corals. I don't think most butterflies are known to eat shrimps or crabs.

Having said that, there are hundreds of species of butterfly fish, so I'm sure that you could find exceptions.

A sessile invert is one that doesn't move. "Sessile" is the opposite of "motile," which would be one that does move around (like a shrimp).

I've kept a copperband (don't recommend them - they're too fragile), a Klein's (coral eaters), and a pyramid. None were even slightly interested in shrimp. I don't keep crabs in my tanks, so can't speak from experience, but it's hard to imagine most butterflies would be interested in them.

Hope this helps.

[falconut]

I've had both Copperband B/F's and a Pyramid with shrimp/crabs and no problems with either. However, as noted above, the Copperbands are difficult. None of mine lasted longer than 6 months, just stopped eatting one day and dead the next, which is apparently common. The Copperbands were in with camel shrimp, skunk cleaner shrimp, peppermint shrimp and blue leg hermits.

I currently have had the Pyramid for about 1-1/2 months with all types of corals, a CBS, 2 Skunk cleaner shrimp, Scarlet reef hermits, BL Hermits and misc. snails. He doesn't bother any of them. Here is a photo of him in QT when I got him:

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/525/45556mini-DSC_0037.JPG


He is definitely one of my favorite fish. One of the easier butterflies to keep. He eats everthing I put in, flakes, pellets, mysis, brine & nori.

[rc02116]

Yes. Yellow Pyramid butterfly is the only very few reef-safe butterflies I believe (very peaceful fish). The Copper Band is hit-or-miss. I've heard of some being an issue in a reef tank, others seem to be ok, but IMO, I wouldn't risk it though.

Edit - Also you just mentioned concerns regarding shrimps and crabs, not corals. If that is the case, you may have a wider choice of butterflies available. If you have corals or planning to have them then I recommend Yellow Pyramid butterfly only. Most people having issues with butterflies are those having reef tank with corals or some inverts (like worms, feather dusters etc).

[deejeff442]

i was looking at a dot dash or saddleback butterfly
maybe a racoon .do you think these fish will leave the crabs and shrimp alone?
i see leathers are safe with angels .same with butterflys?

[Chihuahua6]

I love my three Yellow Pyramid Butterflyfish. They don't bother my softies or polyps and eat everything.
I highly recommend they be treated for flukes in quarantine.

[rockworm]

I have three semilavartus and one has a taste for a colt coral. He nips at the polyps occasionally, so soft corals are not always safe either. I also have a banner and he does not bother anything.

These are in a FOWLR, but I have dropped a couple corals in to see what their tastes are. There is an encrusting monti on one rock and the semis will nip at it. I also have a finger leather and none has bothered it.

Mushrooms are safe as well, so far. The butterflies are in with a bkue face angel as well as potters, flame, bicolor and a few tangs.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13739032#post13739032 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by deejeff442
i was looking at a dot dash or saddleback butterfly
maybe a racoon .do you think these fish will leave the crabs and shrimp alone?
i see leathers are safe with angels .same with butterflys?

[deejeff442]

i am starting to think butterfly fish arent very popular.
i see alot of pics of tanks but never any butterflys

[boilermaker1]

A Yellow Pyramid and a Zoster's (Black Pyramid).....
Definitely cool fish... very active and fun to watch.
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y220/boilermaker1/DSC_0020.jpg