Sohal Tang Primer

[jjstecchino]

This is truly a beautiful fish. It is quite hardy and resistant to parasites such as ich, however as many other tangs is susceptible to Head and Lateral Line Erosion (HLLE).

A fully grown adult is a quite sizable fish attaining a length of 16in in the wild but commonly only 8-10in in captivity. It is a very active swimmer and requires large aquariums of not less than 180g and no less than 6ft in length with ample free swimming space.

The natural habitat of the Sohal Tang is the reef plateau of the Red Sea, Arabian Sea and Arabian Gulf at a dept of usually less than 60ft.

It is an omnivorous fish, however requires plenty of vegetable food. In the wild this fish feeds predominantly on reef algae and weeds. In captivity readily accepts flake or pellet food, meaty food such as clam, shrimp, blood worms etc. but still requires daily vegetable such as nori.

This fish has a lot of positives going for itself, however it has a serious draw back. It can be a very mean fish, especially to other tangs and wrasses. It has the reputation of being the meanest fish of the tang family. For this reason it is commonly recommended to keep one per tank and would be best to keep it as the only tang in the tank.

Having said that it is also true that each fish has its own personality and it is possible to find a more mellow specimen that will pacifically coexist with its tank mates, including other tangs. Even a mellow specimen is likely to be the most dominant fish in the aquarium so it is best introduced last. It is also better to acquire a specimen of slightly smaller or similar size then the current most dominant fish.

Please offer your suggestions and advice for keeping these wonderful fish.

Possible items to cover:

* Facts felt to be key to success on keeping this fish
* Waterflow and tank dimensions
* Acclimation and quarantine
* Tank mates (good and bad)
* Aggressiveness and introduction strategies
* Suggested feeding techniques
* Recommended size at purchase


Please improve the usefulness to the reader by stating opinions as such and actual experiences as such.

Thank in advance to all who participate.

Pictures are always welcome. Here is my Sohal

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v424/claudiog/Tank/Jan%202010/-1249.jpg

And here he is with some of his tank mates.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v424/claudiog/Tank/Jan%202010/-1287.jpg

[Eric the half-bee]

At last, I found a 5-6" healthy sohal at my LFS 2 weeks ago. Someone traded him in as he had outgrown their tank . I quickly snatched up for 125$ as he was eating and healthy. I don't QT. Dropped him in with 30 other fish, 17 being tangs, in a3 year old 400 gal . HE began eating almost immediately and swimming out in the open . The larger tanga did give the usual welcome w/ some chasing but he stood his ground. He has now been accepted and gets along well w/ the family. I have 4 6101 turbelles producing turbulent flow in addition to my barracuda return pump. My tangs often jump into the flow for a ride. I typically feed every other day. 4 sheets nori, frozen foods , live gulf shrimp, mysis, brine, flake and pellet. All my clan eat voraciously.

[sanchoy]

Sohal.: by far my favorite tang.

Very hardy, is the top boss of my tank. He currently lives with a purple,hippo,sailfin,yellow,tomino.. A couple of skirmishes, but he is now the dominator.

eats: new life spectrum pellets, sheets of nori, mysis (selcon).. every day..

-he is also one of the boldest, will come right up to the top to accept the nori..

[Eric the half-bee]

Sohal.: by far my favorite tang.

Very hardy, is the top boss of my tank. He currently lives with a purple,hippo,sailfin,yellow,tomino.. A couple of skirmishes, but he is now the dominator.

eats: new life spectrum pellets, sheets of nori, mysis (selcon).. every day..

-he is also one of the boldest, will come right up to the top to accept the nori..

Sanchoy, you reminded me of how bold mine is. I've been treating apistasia and I have to be cautious w/ the needle as the sohal comes right upto my hand thinking there's food in the syringe.

[HarrsCars]

I got my Sohal from another reefer at about 4 inches. Put him in my 72 bowfront for 14mths till my 300 was done. Hardy eater, active swimmer, very pretty fish. Purposely put him in 300 as the last Tang. 2 Vlamingii tangs and a purple tang. Both Vlamingii were the Sohal's size if not a tad larger. He had grown to about 6 to 7 inches by now. He was boss by end of week. I dont feed sheet nori but fed pellets at least 4 to 5 times daily knowing that well fed woulod help keep temperment down. Both Sohal and Vlamingii's grew fast at that feeding schedule but all was fine. Vlamingii are about 9" and so is the Sohal. It took about 6mths in the 300 for the Sohal to feel like she needed to dominate. She laid open the sides on one of the Vlamingii tangs and clipped the purple. Overnight she became the demon goddesss posessed in my reef tank. So I went fishing. First time I caught her sumped her downstairs and traded her away to a guy that has a fowlr tank.
I had been told once they get to about 3yrs they become very dominant. I would feel much more comfortable with a 450-500 gallon tank with better places to hide then mine had.

http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p316/harrscars/72gallon/CIMG0093.jpg
This is her in our 72 gallon about 2 wks after we got her.

Nice fish on the outside but reminds me of Jack the Ripper on the inside

Thanks
Mike

[Creetin]

Min is about 9 inches and as peacefull of a fish i could ask for. I know i am in the minority. My last one ripped into every fish, and chased down cleaner gobies and and wrasses for trying to clean it. It was evil. This one though is peacefull.
Here he is about just over a year ago. It was about 7.5 inches then. Its grown over an inch in a year. It def is the king of the tank, Just does not rip into other fish like my last one did.

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q128/realcreetin/fish115.jpg

[jjstecchino]

Good stories, kind of scary though. I surely hope mine will no go nuts and try to kill everything moving in the tank.

My Sohal is about 6", no other fish bother him but at the same time he does not bother anybody else. At dinner time, interestingly, the yellows are much more aggressive and the Sohal gets the nori only after the yellows are done. He is not submissive but not very assertive either at this point in time.

[snorvich]

The problem with Sohal Tangs is that they get progressively more aggressive, especially in smaller tanks (I had to remove one from my FOWLR 350 gallon tank) and especially but not only with conspecifics. I certainly would never try one again.

[64Ivy]

I maintained Attilla here for nearly 10 years during which time 'he' grew from about 4" to over 14". He certainly wasn't the most aggressive Sohal in captivity but got pretty froggy during feeding times and kept most other fish at bay until he had his fill (which was almost never). I have a 500g tank and the last couple years of his life, even I began feeling badly about his obvious lack of swimming room. Apparently, it affected him also as I noticed he would behave more and more erratically, dashing about for no discernible reason and running his tankmates into hiding places in which he could no longer fit.

On the other hand, I really enjoyed the time I spent with him as he was definitely the showpiece of the tank and never failed to garner the attention of children and adults alike. He was the most beautiful Sohal I've ever seen.


http://www.moyesreef.com/uploads/Attilla-3-06.jpg

[wickedfish]

I maintained Attilla here for nearly 10 years during which time 'he' grew from about 4" to over 14". He certainly wasn't the most aggressive Sohal in captivity but got pretty froggy during feeding times and kept most other fish at bay until he had his fill (which was almost never). I have a 500g tank and the last couple years of his life, even I began feeling badly about his obvious lack of swimming room. Apparently, it affected him also as I noticed he would behave more and more erratically, dashing about for no discernible reason and running his tankmates into hiding places in which he could no longer fit.

On the other hand, I really enjoyed the time I spent with him as he was definitely the showpiece of the tank and never failed to garner the attention of children and adults alike. He was the most beautiful Sohal I've ever seen.


http://www.moyesreef.com/uploads/Attilla-3-06.jpg

10 plus, probably the most beautiful looking sohal i have ever seen

[Creetin]

Yes thats one of the best i have seen too.

[Gary Majchrzak]

*a Sohal will require at least a 300 gallon aquarium and even that's pushing it.

*this species is much better in a 10 ft. long 500 gallon or larger

*this species can become a terror to other fishes

*rather bulletproof as far as Tangs go, IME/IMO

this one's in a 560
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y270/gary334/IMG_1210keeper.jpg

[snorvich]

I agree with Gary.

[FishBoy05]

Those are some great looking sohals for their size, seems like sometimes they lose their color as they grow.

[Gary Majchrzak]

Those are some great looking sohals for their size, seems like sometimes they lose their color as they grow.
coloration should intensify as this species matures. Loss of color indicates something is wrong.

[jjstecchino]

Those are some great looking sohals for their size, seems like sometimes they lose their color as they grow.

+1 They are truly spectacular.

Well Here we go. I have a perfect excuse to upgrade the 180g to a 10ft 500g.

I'll be talking to the wife about it. :lmao:

[jjstecchino]

My sohal is doing sand slapping (i do not know how better call it). He swims, gains speed, turns on the side and hits the sand with the side of his body as he flicks up and swim away. I was concerned he was scratching some parassite or something on his skin, but looking closely I do not see anything abnormal on the fish. No ich, no scratches or anything else.

Is this normal for this fish? Does it have any behabioral meaning as marking territory or something?

[Creetin]

No thats not normal. IMO Pests cant always be seen especially on a sohal. (White)
I would look closer, and keep an eye on him.

[jjstecchino]

No thats not normal. IMO Pests cant always be seen especially on a sohal. (White)
I would look closer, and keep an eye on him.

I have been looking very close indeed, the skin is perfectly normal, nice and smooth without even the smallest bump, so are the fins. The fish is eating well and otherwise behaving normally. He does not scratch on the rocks, datrs or any other abnormal behavior. Just the sand slapping.

[29reef]

Gary and 64Ivy,

Did yours ever nibble at your fingers/arms while you were cleaning the aquarium? Ive serviced tanks where the the tang would be very bold and "friendly"; did you both experience the same? I have heard the same for some of the other tangs like Bariene and Vlamingi; just wondering if this is the case with your fish.

[Gary Majchrzak]

the Vlamingii I deal with is extremely friendly. I have an Achilles that I can pet, too. I don't stick my arm in that Sohal's tank but the fish will swim up to you so quickly it can startle you if not paying close attention.
I deal with another Sohal as well. I wouldn't rate either Sohal as friendly as Vlamingii. Quite the opposite, in fact.

[64Ivy]

Mine was simply curious as well; just followed my hand around as if expecting food to just mysteriously drop from it. I must say I was careful not to make any sudden moves around him though. A nibble I can handle. His 'scalpel' was another matter.

[Stanley-Reefer]

mine doesn't like me taking the seaweed clip out:spin3:

http://i42.*******.com/2qm3k20.jpg

[jjstecchino]

I may have got a wimp. Mine does not seem overly aggressive, does not bite me or the other fish. He has not had tail fights with any other fish. So far I am happy he is docile. He is about 6in, Is he going to become a terror as he grows larger?

[jjstecchino]

mine doesn't like me taking the seaweed clip out:spin3:

http://i42.*******.com/2qm3k20.jpg

Man that naso is FAT! I did n't notice earlier on. How old is he? What do you feed and how often?

[Sardaukar]

I may have got a wimp. Mine does not seem overly aggressive, does not bite me or the other fish. He has not had tail fights with any other fish. So far I am happy he is docile. He is about 6in, Is he going to become a terror as he grows larger?

Some people's experience seems to be the Sohal, especially if its with other much more dominant/larger tangs, being pretty passive up til about 8-10" and then it can rapidly become a terror. On the other hand, it might be fine.

I've also heard of people doing the opposite, as in making sure the Sohal is king of the tank by putting it with much smaller fish so that it won't feel that its dominance is threatened. Not sure if one method is better or worse than the other.

[Creetin]

If you like sohals check this video out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VG_yoCH_gJw&feature=related

[Kieth71]

That guys gonna get flamed for having that many sohals in that tank! J/K :)

[RealReef7]

My next fish I want is a sohal but I know its not going to happen until I can find a 8-10' tank :D

[Toddrtrex]

If you like sohals check this video out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VG_yoCH_gJw&feature=related

I like this one better. ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lc14obsuHaM&feature=related


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[jjstecchino]

I hope he was scuba diving and he is showing a real reef and not his tank!

[dflad]

Gary and 64Ivy,

Did yours ever nibble at your fingers/arms while you were cleaning the aquarium? Ive serviced tanks where the the tang would be very bold and "friendly"; did you both experience the same? I have heard the same for some of the other tangs like Bariene and Vlamingi; just wondering if this is the case with your fish.

My Sohal enjoys trying to eat me often. Many times when I go into the tank she will surprise me with a bite to a finger. Startling to say the least. She also is extremely fond of her algae clip. That being said, she is one of only two fish in her tank since she does not play well with others /understatement

[jjstecchino]

Well... the sohal has been in my tank for just about six months so I thought I post an update. He still is a model citizen, plays along with the other tangs very well and I still have to see him fighting once. He still does the sand slapping thinghy from time to time. I do not see any abnormality on his skin, so I do not think is trying to scratch. It must be a behavioral thing. He has grown almost an inch, I am afraid he is getting closer to 8" and as mentioned earlier these fish can become a problem as they get larger. I am keeping finger crossed. It is a beautiful fish and I hope I can enjoy him for a long time

Claudio

[Sohal Tang Tim]

Claudio...my sohal tang, who is extremely healthy as far as eating and swimming, is slapping the sand with it's side also.... It does not rub against rock and has ZERO sign of illness... Does not go near shrimp or cleaner wrasse for a cleaning....no interest so I do not think it is external parasite.....

I am wondering if it is habit also???? Other then it slapping the sand on it's side occassionally the fish looks and acts perfectly healthy... it is very very strong eater and swimmer....no problem.

Any ideas anyone? Why does this fish swim on it's side against the gravel occassionally? NOrmal? I have owned 3 of them in the past and the last 3 never did this.....?????

If you find out Claudio please let me know.
Thanks kindly
Tim

[jjstecchino]

Claudio...my sohal tang, who is extremely healthy as far as eating and swimming, is slapping the sand with it's side also.... It does not rub against rock and has ZERO sign of illness... Does not go near shrimp or cleaner wrasse for a cleaning....no interest so I do not think it is external parasite.....

I am wondering if it is habit also???? Other then it slapping the sand on it's side occassionally the fish looks and acts perfectly healthy... it is very very strong eater and swimmer....no problem.

Any ideas anyone? Why does this fish swim on it's side against the gravel occassionally? NOrmal? I have owned 3 of them in the past and the last 3 never did this.....?????

If you find out Claudio please let me know.
Thanks kindly
Tim

Tim, I believe it is normal. The fish is perfectly healthy, just from time to time, while swimming he turns on the side, dives down to the sand and slaps the sand. I also do not see any iaggressiveness before or after he does the slapping so i do not think is a dominant behavior display as well.
If anybody has any info I would love to hear

Claudio

[Sohal Tang Tim]

I hope you are right Claudio.....
I can tell you that a friend of mine dosed my reef with Prodibio stuff
and told me...that the sohal will *stop* doing that with this new biological
bacteria added to the tank.....

honestly...the fish has reduced signficantly the number of times
that he slaps the sand since the use of this product....

Whyyyyyyy would adding a new bacteria to the tank slow the sohal
down from slapping??? Very weird...but....no kidding....it has worked
as far as reducing the sohal from slapping.... he still slaps but...much
more rarely....

Tim

[Creetin]

Maybe its a nerve thing. Speculating here, But i have seen fish rub on the glass when the tank is getting too small for them.
No change in mine he still is in good behavior. No spouts with my full grown scribbled angel.
Now he does spout off with the purple tang though because the purple pester's every fish that gets near his sleeping spot. The purple has a couple spots on him where he has been caught, ;) I am afraid the purple will get caught with a good one one day if he does not stop.

[Stanley-Reefer]

I think the occaisional rubbing is normal too--mine does it and it's FINE.

We scratch our head and ourselves:lmao: Does that mean we have lice or crabs? Most of the time--NO:bigeyes:

The other thing to remember about swinning along side the glas is that they are seeing the reflection of your reef behind them too--you can see them get duped by food that is in a corner until they realize the funhous mirror effect and strike at the actual piece of food!

[1ucky]

My Sohal does the occasional slapping on his left side from time to time; he's been doing this since I've had him (almost a year now). He sometimes goes months without doing it....

[Creetin]

I think the occaisional rubbing is normal too--mine does it and it's FINE.

We scratch our head and ourselves:lmao: Does that mean we have lice or crabs? Most of the time--NO:bigeyes:

The other thing to remember about swinning along side the glas is that they are seeing the reflection of your reef behind them too--you can see them get duped by food that is in a corner until they realize the funhous mirror effect and strike at the actual piece of food!

I dunno if i would compare it to use scratching so much, I would lean more to compare it to a stress condition like a twitch. I have seen many sohals in tanks and never seen one flap on the sand in a normal fashon regularly. A flag would go up if i seen mine do that regularly. IMO

[Creetin]

Heres a little better shot of him. Not much growth other than some girth.
He's just a titch over 9 inches incuding his tail streamer. about 7.5 not including tail.
I can never get him to flair his fins. He does not do that very often.
http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q128/realcreetin/IMG_4328.jpg

[Sohal Tang Tim]

My sohal has completely stopped slapping himself against the sand bottom.

Very weird.....I guess it was a form of claiming territory in the tank perhaps....

Now that he is all settled in..he has completely halted that behavior after

a few months in the tank.....

just and update.


Thanks .

Tim

[Creetin]

Goodt to hear! Mine has become less skittish of me and will pretty much bite my fingers at feeding time. He learned this from the adult male scribbled angel. They pester my hands whenever i am doing stuff in the tank nipping and such. The sohal is never in a defense posture he just wants to eat, He is a fatty and loves to eat. The angel is a porker too.
The angel is the most bothersome and relentless. It does not hurt, Just freaks me out when i go to grab something and out of no where a 9 inch angel takes a pock shot at ya. LOL

[knockout]

any updates or other anecdotes out there! always loved this fish but been afraid it will mess with my sailfin who is about 6" now and have him for 4 years, I am redoing the tank and in the process of reaquascaping, I am thinking of giving this guy a shot... but will like to start with a small one, there is also a yellow tang and many wrasses in the tank today.

215g 72x24x30 tank

[jjstecchino]

any updates or other anecdotes out there! always loved this fish but been afraid it will mess with my sailfin who is about 6" now and have him for 4 years, I am redoing the tank and in the process of reaquascaping, I am thinking of giving this guy a shot... but will like to start with a small one, there is also a yellow tang and many wrasses in the tank today.

215g 72x24x30 tank

Give it a shot, it is a beautiful fish. Mine is behaving well in company of 3 yellows, a sailfin, a powder blue, a naso and kole a few wrasses and a few gobies. I observed mine at the lfs for over a month before taking him home. He was with other tangs and I have never seen him fight, however the lfs had another sohal that was full of scars. He was returned several times because killed several fish on other customer tanks. So it really depend on the fish.

[johnike]

http://i345.photobucket.com/albums/p361/john_eichwedel/015-4.jpg

[R-nel]

Mine is also doing the sand slapping. I wasn't sure what to make of this but it looks like almost everyone here has had the same experience with the sohal... he's only been in my tank for two months, he's about 5 to 6" still kinda small but very healthy eat like a pig and very active. I also have a sailfin and purple tang that are smaller but both has been in my tank the longest, they do keep him in check every once in a while.

[jjstecchino]

I would not be worried about the sand slapping. My Sohal stil does that from time to time, definitely less often than earlier on. I had this fish for one year now, it has grown about 1 inch. It is very active and by far it is not the most aggressive fish in my tank. Most of my other fish had developed some kind of intolerance for other particular fish, the kole tank doesn't like the diamond goby. the PBT does not like the firefish goby, the sixline wrasse doesn't like any other wrasses smaller than he is; The Sohal has not developed any particular dislike. He loves the naso tang, they are similar size and often swim as a pair. The sohal has plenty of swimming space, the tank is 6ft long but has free swimming space in the front and the back of the rockwork, with many caves and passages between front and back. This fish is a very active swimmer and preferably should be kept in a tank much bigger than mine but I believe with proper rock arrangement a 6 ft tank may do ok if this fish will not grow to his full potential. If it does I like him so much that I will upgrade to a 500G just for him.

Claudio

[AfricaOffroad]

My Sohal does not like any other tang in the tank.
He tries to dominate all of them. This includes a purple tang, yellow tang, olivaceus and convict, the latter 2 being his particular dislikes.
He totally ignores every other fish, although he did give the Bellus Angel a good checkover when it first arrived in the tank.

[jjstecchino]

My Sohal does not like any other tang in the tank.
He tries to dominate all of them. This includes a purple tang, yellow tang, olivaceus and convict, the latter 2 being his particular dislikes.
He totally ignores every other fish, although he did give the Bellus Angel a good checkover when it first arrived in the tank.

Well it all depends on the particular fish personality and the Sohal Tangs personality surely have!
A Sohal will definitely be the dominant fish in the tank. They can be very disruptive to the point of killing every other fish. It has been said that the bigger they get, the worst they become, expecially when bigger than 9". A small querrel from time to time is ok but if it becomes a continuous nagging, take the Sohal out and back to the lfs.

[DarthSimon]

I have a 6 Inch Sohal... Had him for 1.5 years. I certainly doesn't terrorize my tank. He will chase my Sailfin tang a bit, but he certainly is not nipping at him, or doing any damage. I swear it's almost like they have a routine. It's comical... The Sailfin will slow down and hit the breaks, and the Sohal rushes past...

Tank Size is 240.... 6 Feet Wide...

[Reefing Newbie]

Doesn't look like anyone has commented here for few months but I do have a question on the Sohal tang. I am currently setting up my own 125gallon, but I am planning out a future 500 gallon reef build for after the 125. Steve is gonna hate me, but here it goes. How would a sohal do with a blue hippo, naso, achilles, and purple tang? I am most worried of the sohal going after the achilles as they are in the same genus, but the sohals are extremely attractive in a strange way! I think it may be the blue fin outlines...

[Sohal Tang Tim]

I have kept a sohal tang with all those fish multiple times including in my present reef... but...it is 8 feet long and 280 gallons.....if you are talking 500 gallon tank...personally....I would have ZERO problem and for me..it would ideally be the powder blue that goes in last not the sohal!

I have never kept sohal with achillies but I do not think it would be any worse then say keeping powder blue with sohal.....

sohal and achillies not same body shape at all....

but...when it comes to all tangs they are really unpredictible to a certain degree...

Myself I would have no problem attempting sohal with achillies....

Far as I am concerned a powder blue is a more aggressive tang then sohal...maybe not quite as dangerous but when a powder blue gets a hate on watch out! I have a powder blue that just initimidated a 10 inch sohal..the powder blue is 1/4 the sohals overall size! So.......

Achillies concern is they need LARGE TANK with A TON OF FLOW and GOOD WATER......

I would not put achillies in anything smaller then 200 gallon and 250 preferably..and 300+ even better!

Achillies I have never kept but I believe it is the hardest tang to keep...due to it being an ich magnet like the powder blue or worse even....

Just my 2cents/opinion.
I am not a pro.

Best of luck

Tim

[Reefing Newbie]

Sorry for the confusion, I meant blue hippo/regal tang, not a PBT... but that is good that I should be fine in the future. When set up there will be lots of flow, and a nice long QT for all of the tangs, to hopefully keep ich out of the equation. I have read that most tangs are pretty resistant to it after they feel comfortable and eat healthily.

[jjstecchino]

In a 125g it would be hard to say. I agree with Tim the PBT in my tank is far more aggressive than the sohal. It is the PBT who usually gives hell to any new fish introduced in the tank not the sohal. Having said that I have been keeping many tangs together and quite peacefully for a couple of years. I have a 180 with 3 yellows, a sailfin, a PBT, a naso, a soha and a kole as far as tang go.
They have been living together without issues so far. My tank has plenty of swimming space in front and behind the rock work with plenty of hiding places and this may contribute to the success so far.
All I can say is try, however waiting for the 500g may be a good idea.
I have never had an achilles but I believe it compares to the PBT as far as propensity to ich. My PBT has always be healthy and never had ich, but I strictly quarantined all of my fish.

[Reefing Newbie]

I was defiantly planning on waiting for the 500 as I don't know if anything will interior the plans for the 500 gallon. So waiting for the 500 for all o those rants for sure. Interesting that the PBTs are more aggressive than the sohals... Would a PBT in addition to the fangs listed maybe keep the sohal in check? I think I would add a PBT to the list if so. Strict QT was in the plan for sure!

[jjstecchino]

I was defiantly planning on waiting for the 500 as I don't know if anything will interior the plans for the 500 gallon. So waiting for the 500 for all o those rants for sure. Interesting that the PBTs are more aggressive than the sohals... Would a PBT in addition to the fangs listed maybe keep the sohal in check? I think I would add a PBT to the list if so. Strict QT was in the plan for sure!

The relationship between PBT and sohal is complicated. They pretty much ignore each other most of the time. In a confrontational situation e.g. Food or shelter the shoal is clearly the dominant one and keep everybody else in check.
However if a new fish is introduced the shoal ignores him while the PBT give him hell sometime to the point of newcomer demise.

[Reefing Newbie]

Okay, Sohal is basically just aggressive showing his dominance while PBTs just give hell because they were there first. When I start the build I will definantly start a thread for it and see how the sohal goes for me, they are just so beautiful. I think maybe my 3rd favorite fish, I would have to say that I am obsessed with tangs in general tho lol

[AfricaOffroad]

Far as I am concerned a powder blue is a more aggressive tang then sohal...maybe not quite as dangerous but when a powder blue gets a hate on watch out!

This has also been my experience:hmm1:

[runintoluck]

Hi,

Just wanna share my experiences with the sohal tang also. Just to point out, my sohal tang also does the sand slapping thing. He was in qt for a month and showed no signs of disease before I added him to the display. It has been a few months and it just began to display that behavior. But otherwise it is a voracious eater, loves his nori and PE. He only displays the occasional aggression towards his tankmates, an emperor angel and blonde naso, which are both bigger than him. Just my experience and might I add, a very beautiful fish!

[Creetin]

The achilles will not handle stress very well.
The sohal can handle it but will pass it down to the other fish. Save the money and use it for your 500 gallon. My sohal has grown an inch, and has beat up the purple tang. I removed all tangs except him.
Putting him with a hippo tang will likely end with the hippo being hurt.
All those tangs except the purple will not go well in a 125 gallon.
Here he is fighting with my glass scraper.
I would not say he is evil, But i won't chance other fish's health with him.
http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q128/realcreetin/P1020468.jpg

[jjstecchino]

This has also been my experience:hmm1:

I agree 100%. The PBT is a lot more temperamental. If he hates another fish he is relentless until the opponent is dead or out of the tank!

[jjstecchino]

Okay, Sohal is basically just aggressive showing his dominance while PBTs just give hell because they were there first. When I start the build I will definantly start a thread for it and see how the sohal goes for me, they are just so beautiful. I think maybe my 3rd favorite fish, I would have to say that I am obsessed with tangs in general tho lol

I mean I agree with the above on the PBT vs Sohal

[cbbram]

Bump

[Rapide]

What have we here...
Sopeople have been talking about Sohan versus Leucosternon here?
I have both, and they get along well. They swim together all the time and basically ignore all others... In addition to those two I have a Chenochaetus strigosus, Paracanthurus hepatus, Zebrasoma flavescens and Siganus vulpinus in that pack. Also lot of smaller fishes, but they don't matter, they live their own life ;)
The most aggressive would be the Kole and Yellow. The Sohal does occacionally chase the Leuco for a second, but every fish does that every now and then. Sohal is 5-6" now, and it's the biggest fish at the moment. Eats from my hand and follows me ALL THE TIME!! He seems happy ;)

[Sohal Tang Tim]

I have owned about 7 Sohal tangs over the years in various size reefs..but usually with a fair amount of tangs in each tank...some perhaps overstocked a bit...I have never had a sohal tang kill another fish...but...I have had
pbt kill 2 fish and a yellow tang killed a purple....thats it for dead fish due
to fighting...a lousy 3 tangs out of at least 70-80 that I have owned.

Sohal will chase fish and scap shortly and then come back but he usually
gets bored after a while...(except maybe feeding time)

The PBT iffffffff it gets you in it's sights...you are DEAD..it will chase you
till you die of exhaustion or until you just disappear into the night.
PBT in my opinion, by far, the most deadly tang when it wants to be.

I have the following tangs together right now without a problem in an 8ft
300 gallon

sohal
naso
2 yellows
blue
horseshoe
clown
blonde naso

not a single problem...the sohal chases the clown occassionally but never
comes close to catching him...and zero damage ...all eating and no problems.

I think the key is to feed often and do not add sohal first.
If sohal or pbt are put in a tank first you are asking for trouble.

Hope this sheds some light on the subject.
I think one of the reasons I have had luck is because I usually stock heavy
with tangs..>I think the more often they see each other the worse it is but if there are MORE tangs almost like a school sometimes they DO school together and they scrap or chase each other much much less...

Example...put sohal and pbt in a tank together ...no other fish and
then just play the death march.

Tim

[Gogandantess]

^ Tim I would love to see your tank and combination of Tangs there. Sounds like all my favs minus the Achilles. Do you have a tank thread,etc? Big fan of the Horseshoe tang here.

[Rapide]

Tim, are your sohal and lineatus full grown?
I'd love to get a lineatus, but from what I underatand they can be really nasty...

I have had my PBT before many others, and have had no teouble when adding new fishes. It has never shown any aggression towards other fishes...

[Sohal Tang Tim]

They are not full grown...the sohal is small and the clown tang is medium size.

I have never kept a clown tang until now....and I may have to sell one of

them in the future IF a problem develops.....so far they are like peas and carrots lololololo ok ok....ummmmm peas and maybe a little corn in there! LOLO

Here is a video...oh ya..I have a lieutenant tang too. :)

http://s1039.photobucket.com/albums/a477/maccafanjames007/?action=view&current=horseshoetangvideo.mp4

enjoy

[geaux xman]

They are not full grown...the sohal is small and the clown tang is medium size.

I have never kept a clown tang until now....and I may have to sell one of

them in the future IF a problem develops.....so far they are like peas and carrots lololololo ok ok....ummmmm peas and maybe a little corn in there! LOLO

Here is a video...oh ya..I have a lieutenant tang too. :)

http://s1039.photobucket.com/albums/a477/maccafanjames007/?action=view&current=horseshoetangvideo.mp4

enjoy

so horshoe tang = fowleri? it looks awesome in the vid.

kinda hard to get a good read on the fowleri's coloration in the video though.

sohal's just appear way too hyperactive for me.

[Sohal Tang Tim]

Sohal Tang is by far my favorite tang.

The horseshoe tang changes colours and is drop dead gorgeous fish ....
He has blue tinges, orangish yellow tinge, dark colourations mostly....
but he can lighten in colour in a flash and when he does the blues really
jump out...very beautiful fish....

I have posted another video of my reef with other fish in it about 1 year old video....at that time I had a 1 foot long sohal and a 10 inch dusumerri that was
a real favorite of mine....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouXa_RfHgtA WARNING - it is relaxin video...dont fall asleep!


Tim

[Gogandantess]

Wow very nice! How big is the Fowleri?

[Sohal Tang Tim]

He is at least 8 inches maybe 9....not a small fish....

The sohal I had was bigger and so was the dusumerri....

But this horseshoe is a big tang...he will get bigger in 8ft 300 gallon

that he is in with ease.


thks,

Tim

[vamaro]

I picked up a Sohal yesterday. I have watching his fish for the last three weeks at my LFS. He was with other tangs and a Foxface. I did not see any aggression to I picked him up. He is about 5 to 6 inches.

I have a very unusual community tank that includes the most behaved Queen Trigger, stingrays, and spiny puffer. I feed heavy and often which keeps the trigger fat and happy.

I will update if anything interesting or eventful happens.

[Sohal Tang Tim]

My belief is that the sohal will be fine...usually it is other tangs he scraps with and not always and not all the time....

I have a small 3 inch sohal in my 8ft...he scares 8 inch tangs away from the nori and takes over at times... I am worried how he will be when bigger but I
am hoping in time he will calm down lolololol

Funny to see a 3 inch fish chase a 8 inch lololol

He does not hurt them...but ...he is quick but there is 8ft of tank so everyone gets away from the aggressor easy...even if into the rock etc...

Tim

[travis32]

I just got a Sohal for my 230gallon piano wave shaped tank (6 ft long). It is around 4-5" in length, very good coloration. It was at the LFS for a year in a reef tank. Doing very well.. So far I've fed it Rods food, which it ate some, but wasn't overly excited about. It was way more excited when I fed formula 1 flake... (Maybe what the LFS fed it?) Looks like I have to get some nori for it too to keep agression down.

Right now I have a couple rocks that are covered in fuzzy algae, it loves LOVES nipping at that algae. Several spots that are cleaned off down to the rock in under 2 days. I figure live algae is healthier than nori probably.

So far it is chasing my hippo around at times, my hippo was the bully.. It would go attack my chromises just to keep them separated... lol.

So far the agression is simply chasing type stuff. And it's funny the hippo goes and hides in his cave and the Sohal runs around looking for him. I'm not worried since it's only been a couple days and neither of them fights the other for food.. So, I think it'll be o.k.

The sohal will be my only showfish though. I need to add a pair of clowns, and would like a dragonet or two eventually. But, I think those should be safe additions at some point.. hopefully.

I'm looking forward to see this fish's personality develop. It doesn't seem overly agressive so far, but, it is for a very active fish!

[Achilles Torben]

Hallo@all

I have a 1450 gallon SPS only tank. I thing about a pair of powder blue and one Sohal.

I am also plan some pair of angels. Pair Genicanthus semifasciatus, pair Apolemichthys xanthopunctatos, pair Chaetodontoplus conspicillatus, pair Pomacanthus navarchus, pair Holacanthus tricolor, and one Pomacanthus imperator or Pomacanthus annularis.

Is this list works together with a Sohal? Or risk to high?

Greetings Tow

[Joke]

There easy to care fir if you have a 6 foot tank. Do not put one in any less. When i got my first one i had him in my 4 1/2 foot long thank for 4 years it got to the point where every fish were hiding even during feeding time. You can keep them in a 4-5 foot tank but i strongly dont recommend it as they wil turn into a killer. Ive had success keepinging one in a 7 foot predator tank thinking he would becom aggressive but turns out to be the most peaceful fish in all my tanks. He is happy and growing soon will be the 6th year in my tank

[Dmorty217]

They are easy to care for when small but they olny get more aggressive with size and anything under the 300g mark should be avoided like the plague. 8ft tank length is good 10ft is better

[Achilles Torben]

Hello, thank you. My tank is 12.5 ft. My riff is in the middle of the tank so the fish have two sides and can swim cycles.

I visit somebody who have the second Sohal. The first was a beast the second friendly. But now I often heard when they grow they are terrible to new bigger tankmates. My idea is to put him at least. And when I have to introduce another big fish I catch the Sohal an put him into Qt (150 gallon) for two weeks.

[nuxx]

Every fish is different... I spoke to somebody on RC that has kept over a dozen Sohals and only 3 were mean. This includes large ones as well.

I almost feel a large Hippo / YB Blue Tang has just as much chance as being aggressive.

[Red Sea reefer]

I had one about 6.5 " he was eating good and doing good and never been aggressive to any other fishes even for the new add he don't care be just swimming all over the tank , the tank was small it's 160 gallon and he was doing great tell he end up ate by my anemone
And am planning to get another one , this fish is my favorite .

[jbvdhp]

Mines maybe about 4" and could care less about tank mates. Love this tang. Lively, always active.

[Salty150]

This thread needs a revival. :)