Powder blue to agressive?, yes/no?

[plancton]

Hi, I have a 150 gal tank. I can´t introduce small fish anymore, because they get killed by the mantis shrimp which I can´t get out BTW.

So I was thinking on introducing big fish. My current fish list is this:

2x clownfish
1x salifin tang
1x blue hippo tang

The sailfin is huge, about 6". The blue hippo tang is about 3". They are both extremel peaceful, they never bully each other, the sailfin is very unshy and swims a lot. The blue hippo is extremely shy and hides a lot, even before the arrival of the sailfin.

I like the powder blue, its a nice fish, my gf loves it, it won´t get eaten by the mantis, and I´ve seen a few friends keeping one with other tangs, and no probs.

I know sohal tangs are insanely agressive, 2 friends got rid of them cuz they attacked viciously other tangs. I don´t want that to happen.
Will it become to agressive?, any recommendations?.

[fox2589]

i dont know about aggressive but they are ich magnets!-drew

[Tswifty]

If you are adding it last, then you should be alright (they are definitely the boss of the tank though). However, adding fish after it will be a gamble. I had a Yellow Tang in my tank before I added my Powder Blue Tang... no problems between the two at all... but when I attempted to add a Tomini Tang to the group, WWIII broke out. I had trouble introducing a Flame Angel later on as well.

I will add that once my tank was broken down, I sold the Powder Blue to a friend. He had a 220g tank, and his 6" Blue Hippo Tang took it out within 24hrs... and my Powder Blue was no pushover.

Good luck with whatever you decide, they are beautiful fish.

[Gwynhidwy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15527430#post15527430 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by plancton

The sailfin is huge, about 6".

Just wait until he gets to 12"! :D

Beautiful fish, but personally, I wouldn't try it. Everyone that I have known who has kept a PBT in something smaller than a 240G for more than 18 months has had serious aggression problems.

[mcoomer]

I love Powder Blue Tangs and yes they can be problematic. Depending on the temperment of your other tangs this fish is likely to be running the show within a week of being added to your tank. If you have enough rockwork for each fish to feel like they have a place to hang out and hide I think you'll be fine. They're probably going to mix it up a bit when you add the PBT but the order of things should get sorted out pretty quickly. After the initial getting to know you period my fish settled into a pattern of displaying to each other whenever food is introduced to the tank and that's about it. Ocassionally the PBT will chase someone for a few laps of the tank but it's pretty short episodes.

Ich can be a problem but I've found that varying the diet of frozen foods that I use and keeping a steady supply of nori in the tank have made all my tangs fat and happy. When I don't feed nori for awhile I notice agression increase between feeding times and changes in the fish's coloring because of the increased agitation. Keep a regular supply of nori in the tank and they swim by and graze when they want. A healthy diet provides them with the nutrients they need and reduces agression in the tank. That's really important for keeping ich at bay. I have a PBT, Desjardini Sailfin, Yellow, and Hippo and haven't seen ich in years and years.

Hope you enjoy the fish.

Mike

[maroun.c]

I would say the problem in your tank would be the Sailfin as these grow huge and quick. PBT while a very nice fish is very prone to ich so that something yo uhave to prepare for before introducing the fish. a quarantine for 4-6 weeks is essential on those. Lost one few weeks ago and lost few fish with it not sure but most probably it's because it brought ich to the tank.
each fish is different and yours might get along fine with your fish. Thebest sight was seing my hyppo and PBT holding a piece of Nori each from his side and eating it all the way... As mentioned before the fish will dominate or try to dominate all other tangs in your tank.

[mckostya]

pbt in my tank http://www.justin.tv/myfishtank12
love this fish!

[wooden_reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15527566#post15527566 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by fox2589
i dont know about aggressive but they are ich magnets!-drew

How resistant a fish is to ich should never be the issue. You eradicate ich so a fish cannot be susceptable to someting that does not exist.

BTW, in general, how ammonia tolerant a fish is should also not be the issue even for the novice, since ammonia will be zero if you cycle well every place, QT, DT, HT. Even beginners can do it.

The ease of eating well should be the top issue of whether a fish is fit even for a novice. Behavorial issue is the next important one. A novice should know what an undulate trigger means, for example.

[plancton]

The ich is not an issue I care!. I have never medicated an ich infected tang and they always get better on their own. I haven´t had a tang getting sick with ich in 2 years.

What I care is the Powder blue going extremely agressive. I read on live aquaria that "they are extremely agressive"

My sailfin is very peaceful, and my blue tang is shy as hell, hides half of the time in the rockwork.

The sailfin eats nori and nothing else, I could just buy another nori clip and put it on the other side for the powder blue.

The hippo blue tang only eats pellets, flakes or other things except nori or algae, so he is not going to compete for nori at least.

What you´re saying calms me a bit, remember this is a 150gal tank

[Tswifty]

I agree with you. Ich is really a non-issue.

The only advice I can offer is to just watch how your Sailfin and Blue Tangs act. The Powder Blue certainly isn't going to go nuts on everyone as soon as you drop it in. Like I mentioned, I only noticed aggression from my PBT towards fish that were added after it. Although, he would occasionally put the other fish in their place if they stepped out of line... but nothing I was ever concerned about.

Good luck

[rynon]

I have a 137 gallon tank and would never consider another tang. I have a Kole tang (3 inch) and a small hippo tang (2 inch). IMO this is more a question of ethics than anything else. Think about the fish, not if it would work out.

[BigJay]

My powder blue is extremely aggressive, but most of the other fish stay out of its way so it isn't a problem.

My PBT is usually too busy harassing or trying to kill the only fish who isn't afraid of him - his own reflection. It's hilarious to watch.

[iLLwiLL]

This is a great video that shows just how aggressive they can be. As nice as that PBT looks, I sure wouldn't want a tank with 2 tangs cowering in a corner. I was stricken by the beauty of this fish, but realized i would probably be better off going with a powder brown.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccouM0rhILA

~Will.

[Tswifty]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15531523#post15531523 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rynon
IMO this is more a question of ethics than anything else.
Wow... that's a ridiculous addition to the thread. I must have missed it in the classifieds, but are the Tang Police hiring again?
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15531523#post15531523 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rynon
I have a 137 gallon tank... I have a Kole tang... and a... hippo tang...
You have a Blue Hippo Tang in a tank smaller than 300g! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW BIG THAT FISH GETS! HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE LOCKED IN A CLOSET YOUR WHOLE LIFE! AHHHHHHHH! :lol: :lol: :lol: See what I mean? :lol: ;)

Sorry for the sidetrack. Good luck to the OP whatever they decide. :)

[BigJay]

Cripes, my PBT just attacked my hand held algae scraper. All I was trying to do is get the algae at the bottom of the glass near the sand. I got too close to his algae clip and WHAM! He started trying to knife the thing with his scalpel.

I guess my 180 gallon tank is fully stocked with this tang and a kole. There's no way I'm going to try to add another.

[serpentman]

NANO TANGS RULE!!!!!

[plancton]

Honestly my tank looks empty, that´s why I want another fish, If I didn´t have a mantis I would just add many small fish.

I saw that video about the PWDB and it looks sad to see those other tangs cornered, but at the same time, it is a video about new additions, I see that often with other new fish as well.

A PWDB would be the last addition to the tank, like I said I´ve seen them very peaceful in other tanks, but I wouldn´t want it to make an issue.

I know that for example, sohal tangs will be to agressive for sure and in this case, they try to kill every new addition, I´ve seen it.

But please keep posting your experinences with powder blue. The other option would be a yellow tang, although I´ve kept them before and they are not hardy, they have a hard time trying to eat pellets, and not as pretty.

Remember: 150 gal, 1 peaceful joyful sohal tang, one peaceful very shy hippo tang.

A picture of my tank and my tangs:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y131/avillax/IMG_1178.jpg

[plancton]

more opinions please

[sanababit]

he will be aggresive

sana

[iLLwiLL]

Have you tried a trap to get the mantis out? Your tank looks amazing and would be even more so with a bunch of smaller and colorful reef safe fish.

~Will.

[stanlalee]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15531554#post15531554 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by iLLwiLL
This is a great video that shows just how aggressive they can be. As nice as that PBT looks, I sure wouldn't want a tank with 2 tangs cowering in a corner. I was stricken by the beauty of this fish, but realized i would probably be better off going with a powder brown.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccouM0rhILA

~Will.

I didn't find it that aggressive at all in that video especially considering it had been there for 2wks and the two other tangs were just introduced. I've seen MANY a tang go much more bizerk than that when new tangs were introduced.

For the most part I think their aggression is overstated (especially since that blue seas animal planet episode with the powders attempting to fight off convict tangs from their algae patch). yellow and purple tangs, power browns and many other tangs go ape crap when new fish and tangs are added as well. like most semi aggressive fish introducing in the ideal order goes a long way to avoiding headaches as opposed to deciding what and when as you go.

[RB Chagoi]

When adding tangs, or any fish for that matter, please do your research. Understand the consequences to the fish you are adding and to the current inhabitants. I implore you to consider this over your own likes and desires. I also ask that you consult the experts and their writings. Folks like Bob Fenner and Scott Michael have no reason to tell you anything but what they believe is correct information. While I appreciate the opinions of all on this board, we often cannot help but defend our own practices.

I am not the tang police, rather a former tang inmate. I had a 55 with 2 Blue devil damsels, a wrasse, a purple dottyback, 2 oscellaris clowns, a 5" blue hippo, a 4" yellow and a 5-6" sailfin. All seemed happy and never fought, that I saw. However, in two years, I replaced the yellow and the blue hippo; could not let the grand son see that Bubbles and Dory died. Also a powder brown died replaced by the sailfin. Water quality always checked good. This eerily follows the consequences of not heeding advice of those with experience. I saw a pattern of issues and premature death, possibly of stress of the fish due to short swim length and the tangs natural instinct to protect feeding areas. Note:, this did not happen overnight, but rather over a period of of three years , plus.

I now have a 240 and will have no more than two tangs, because of typical tang behavior. The natural feeding area on a reef has been cited to be 20 to 40 ft, that is 10 to 20 ft either way. Some may say an 8ft is still not practicing good fish husbandry for even one fish. So, I am not attacking your choices, just encouraging you to seek advice from experts, not someone like me. Just two years ago, I would have told you 3 tangs in a 55 caused no issues.

Bottom line it is your tank and you can add any fish you want to any size tank. You have to decide what is ethically correct for you and how much you value the standards of good fish husbandry.

As a side note, you will increase your potential for issues by adding more than one tang from any genus. I would recommend only having one Acanthurus/paracanthurus, one Zebrasoma, one Ctenochaetus or one naso in any common size tank.

If you desire links to any "recognized expert" opinions, I have some I will be happy to share. Links not opinions! :)

[plancton]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15536569#post15536569 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by iLLwiLL
Have you tried a trap to get the mantis out? Your tank looks amazing and would be even more so with a bunch of smaller and colorful reef safe fish.

~Will.

That would be my wish, but sadly its impossible. I have captured 3 mantis, there´s only 1 left, but it is the smartest. All of the mantis I´ve trapped were quite small, yet they managed to take out way bigger fish. I once had a lemmon mimic tang which was a very good addition and behaved very well, but it was about 2.5" and thin, one day I woke up to find it full of cuts everywhere, still healhty though, it healed in about a few weeks, and then it was never seen again.

That´s when I took the third mantis out, then one day I found the head of my 4" wrasse who lived in that tank for 3 years without problems, later on the copperband I had just added, dissapeared, and a little later my small carpenter wrasse that had 5 months with me.

The clicking sounds etc. No trapped ever worked, homemade or Xterminator. Only method was to take the rocks out and find them, that´s how I found them all by hearing the clicking sounds.

But the last one, the smartest, after 2 days of placing rocks in my sump and taking and moving corals, was never to be found, shouls be small like the others, but extremely deadly.

The worst things is that many montiporas got damaged, it seems they do not resit well to be exposed to air as acros do. ´My small frag of Tyree blue polyp cap seems to be dead now, and my Idaho grape monti is half dead but it will survive and thrive, still sucks a lot to do so much effort and find nothing and have corals die or almost die.

It is a terrible situation, I curse the bastard who sold me the live rock and told me it didn´t have mantis in it, that at most it would have pistol shrimps, that by the way I´ve never found. If I wouldn´t have listened to him I could have just dry everything and then place it in my tank, as I already had good water and live rock from my first tank.

It is a horrible situation.