Trigger question

[Allmost]

so this is not for me, but for a friend that I'm setting up a tank with.

what is the easiest to care for and hardiest and smallest trigger out there ?

any advice is appreciated. he wants a 65G like mine, so wanted to know if there are any triggers that would fit it.
are there any reef safe triggers ?


Also, why does it say on the net that min tank size for Achilles Tang is 75G ?!!!!

wrong right ?

[Wolverine]

65g tank is small for any triggers. You could make an argument for keeping an undulated in there, as long as it's the only living thing in the tank.
There are reef safe triggers (Xanthichthys triggers, most Melichthys, some Odonus niger), but not that will fit in a tank that size.

Yes, you're right that a 75g is too small for an achilles tang.

[Allmost]

sorry, so what would be the min to keep a trigger ?
100G ? I wanna show him this thread for him to see he needs bigger thank :P

[Wolverine]

What kind of trigger?
For the Xanthichthys triggers (bluejaw, crosshatch, sargassum), I don't like to keep them in anything under 180g.
A lot of people keep undulated triggers and Rhinecanthus triggers in smaller tanks (75-100g), but it can definitely limit your options for other animals. That's especially true with the undulated, which can be one of the most belligerent fish available.

[Allmost]

thanks,

yes its going to be a trigger only tank.

[viggen]

I would think something like a picasso which stay kinda small would be the only option for a tank that size but he would outgrow it one of these day. If you do not want to have to upgrade the tank or unload the fish to someone else I would do a 125g-150g tank, something 6 feet long.

That would allow you to consider several different triggers & also add some tangs or other colorful fish. Triggers like the Queen & Clown get to big & to much of a attitude, they can get well over a foot long.

Achilles have a big attitude & need a LOT of room due to their energy level & also attitude. Tangs of that family need a 6ft or longer tank.

[coolali16]

A pink tail trigger is also a reef-safe trigger. They're not aggressive and if any fish tries to bully it it will just simply ignore w.e is bothering it.

[Wolverine]

A pink tail trigger is also a reef-safe trigger. They're not aggressive and if any fish tries to bully it it will just simply ignore w.e is bothering it.

That's why I listed Melichthys in my first post. That said, they are usually reef safe. Not always. Every once in a while you'll see a less fish safe and less coral safe individual.

[Stuart60611]

I do not think a pinktail would be able to kept long in that volume unless alone and even then outgrow the tank fairly quickly. These guys get very large. They also definitely become aggressive and bully tankmates, particularly when feeling uduly confined. I had to get rid of mine for that reason and so did LisaD. I kept mine in a 6 foot 125, and LisaD also kept hers in a much larger volume than we are talking about here. Both of our pinktails were majorilly bullying tankmates. Also, pinktails, unlike humas and other triggers from that genus, are not slow growers and grow at a fairly decent clip so they do not stay small long.

[blumoon reefers]

+1 to the information about pink tails. I have one in my 150 that started right around 3". That was 6 months ago. It is now closer to 6" and is the boss of the tank. She is only a bully to any new additions, but quickly mellows out. But she is first in line for feeding! Also, I consider her to be reef-safe, but NOT invert safe. She has never even so much as nipped at corals, but I have seen her eat 2 $30.00 cleaner shrimp and my snail population is completely decimated. I have watched her pick up snails and beat them against the glass, follow them to the bottom of the tank and wait for them to start turning themselves over. Once they put their foot out, she goes on the attack.

Right now I am in the process of setting up a 265 FOWLR and she is the first one going in the new tank.

[Snapper66]

A 65 Gallon for a Huma Huma Trigger Fish would be fine for a Few Years They grow Slow.I have had mine for over Two Years and He has not grown Much.

[Stuart60611]

A 65 Gallon for a Huma Huma Trigger Fish would be fine for a Few Years They grow Slow.I have had mine for over Two Years and He has not grown Much.

Not with most tankmates for more than 3 years if you got the smallest of babies b/c by then the huma will have obtained about 3 inches. I have raised at various initial buying sizes 3 different humas and housed them in my 6 foot 125 with a bunch of what one would consider suitable tankmates. In all 3 instances, the humas at about 3 or a bit larger inches became overly aggressive attacking and terrorizing tankmates. I had to get rid of all 3. In a 65, you can expect the same to occur probably earlier and/or much more severely b/c of the tank's much smaller size. I would note that it has been my experience that tank size makes all the difference with these fish b/c one of the humas I got rid of I sold to a member here who houses my former terror in a 225 and describes the same fish and well manored. These fish become quite territorial as they age and need space or become quite beligerent.

[Ocicat]

That's why I listed Melichthys in my first post. That said, they are usually reef safe. Not always. Every once in a while you'll see a less fish safe and less coral safe individual.
Yes... My pinktail very nearly killed a pair of clownfish I added, chasing them madly all over the tank, and I had to catch him that very day and take him to the LFS. (The clownfish had meanwhile burrowed beneath a rock to get away from him - I thought they had been eaten until they eventually came back out!)

I had him in a 180, and he was such an active, large fish that even 180 felt a bit small for him.

[MrTuskfish]

Not with most tankmates for more than 3 years if you got the smallest of babies b/c by then the huma will have obtained about 3 inches. I have raised at various initial buying sizes 3 different humas and housed them in my 6 foot 125 with a bunch of what one would consider suitable tankmates. In all 3 instances, the humas at about 3 or a bit larger inches became overly aggressive attacking and terrorizing tankmates. I had to get rid of all 3. In a 65, you can expect the same to occur probably earlier and/or much more severely b/c of the tank's much smaller size. I would note that it has been my experience that tank size makes all the difference with these fish b/c one of the humas I got rid of I sold to a member here who houses my former terror in a 225 and describes the same fish and well manored. These fish become quite territorial as they age and need space or become quite beligerent.
Very true; IME&IMO. Cramped quarters=stress=aggression; especially with predatory or territorial fish, like triggers. I think a triggers need for space increases with age, not just size---just a personal observation.

[Stuart60611]

Yes... My pinktail very nearly killed a pair of clownfish I added, chasing them madly all over the tank, and I had to catch him that very day and take him to the LFS. (The clownfish had meanwhile burrowed beneath a rock to get away from him - I thought they had been eaten until they eventually came back out!)

I had him in a 180, and he was such an active, large fish that even 180 felt a bit small for him.


I had a very similar experience when adding three yellowtail damsels to my 125 with an estabished huma. Within seconds of introduction, my huma bit two of the damsels in half. The third one also was bitten, but it managed to make its way to the rocks and hide for about 1 hour. It then wandered out of the rocks with a gash, and the huma proceeded to bite him in half. I do not think triggers generally are very tolerant of any new additions, and quickly get conditioned from feeding that anything that enters from the top of the tank is food.

[MrTuskfish]

Expecting that cute little Picasso (Niger, Huma, or whatever) trigger at the lfs to stay peaceful & play nice is wishful thinking. Most triggers are big, aggressive carnivores. you can't change this fact. I know, there are some exceptions, there are to everything.

[jgonz2264]

well my niger trigger was a tough fella