Best dwarf angel?

[Kawaii]

What would be the best angel to get as far as easy to care for and reef safe?

The tank is 29g with 33lbs of live rock so far but we will be adding some base rock.

The current fish are two ocellaris clownfish and a sixline wrasse, all of which are pretty tiny, maybe an inch.

We already have a Coral Beauty in one tank and although it is a wonderful fish, we would like a different kind in the other tank.

I really like the flame angel, and it is a major consideration at this point but i would like to know of some other options.

Thanks,
Nikki

[Pinstripes]

IMO , I like Halfblack Angel or Keyhole Angelfish!

Pin

[ZC]

I really like the potter's angel or the brazilian flameback

[garvondavis14]

i like my flame a lot, also like potter's and golden. those are probably my three favorite dwarf angels

[ClownNut]

Japanese(if u can get u hand on one)
Flame
Potter

[thor32766]

corals beauties are sweet fish

[chessmanmark]

Reef safe, not dwarf
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=341&N=3
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=413&N=3

[besl]

African flameback

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=446&N=3

As with any dwarf angel there are no guarantees that they won't nip at the corals.

[PatrickB101]

they are all just about as equally easy to care for imo

i have owned a

keyhole
rusty
argi (commonly called pygmy)
potters
flame
bi-color

imo the argi is the only acceptable fish for a 29gal

[flameangel88]

How about golden angel--very pretty but also very shy:

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=1154&N=3

[BTTRFLYGRL]

IMO...Flames, Coral Beautys and other Angels that grow 4-6 inches need at least a 55 gallon...An Argi would be a better choice

[Kawaii]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8216114#post8216114 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ClownNut
Japanese(if u can get u hand on one)
Flame
Potter

Wow, I had never heard of the Japanese Angelfish and I just saw some photos of it-beautiful! I can't imagine how much those go for.

I think now my decision is between the Potter's Angel, Eibl's Angel and the Flame. I hadn't really heard of the Potter's Angel much and it is very pretty and less common so I may go with that one but I am afraid that the Flame may be a little heartier. I like the Eibl Angel but my boyfriend doesn't really so he will have to see it in person to make his decision. I will see what they have at my LFS.

[r00onmac]

potters are tough to keep, they dont adapt well to aquarium life, but if you get them too then they seem to workout well...

eibli are beautiful IMO but are less reef safe than other dwarf angels from what i have heard

flames are very common and very hardy... but IMO may grow too big for a 29...

HTH you make your decision

[PatrickB101]

i think ppl are suggesting angels are not looking at the fact that its a 29 gallon really only one suitable dwarf in that size is the argi.

[Kawaii]

The angel we get will be very small and we will be upgrading to a larger tank in a year if it makes anyone happy. Maybe the sites are wrong but liveaquaria.com and marinedepotlive.com say that most dwarf angels are fine for a 30g anyways.

We actually lucked out when we went to the LFS just now because they had an Elibi angel and it was beautiful and the perfect size, unfortunately it had a scrape on it so they said they would put it in a hospital tank and let us know.

[ACBlinky]

I'd definitely go with one of the smaller angels. A 29g is way too small for a Potter's IMO -- this species wants loads of rock to graze and gets big for a dwarf angel. I'd also avoid halfblacks (C. vroliki), they get large and have more attitude than some other species IME. I worked at a LFS and every halfblack we brought in was quickly the boss of its tank, they even beat damsels up. A pygmy species is probably best - flameback, cherub, or white-tail (C. flavicauda) would be my choice. Even the little guys want more space than you'd suspect from their size -- my flavicauda is a much happier little guy since I moved him from a 30g into the 65g. If you're upgrading in a year it should be fine. Dwarf angels can be feisty; keep an eye out for fights between the angel and the clowns or wrasse.

[BTTRFLYGRL]

Marinedepotlive wants to sell fish...they don't care what size tank you put it in and most of their 'minimum tank sizes' are too small...read, ask other hobbyist..

[Bax]

I had a CB in a 26 bow, still have the CB and we absolutely love it! That said, I always wished we had gotten a pair of Argi dwarfs for the 26.

[Kawaii]

We have lots of rock in our other 29g reef and our coral beauty seems to love it. she swims inbetween the rocks all day and there are so many hiding spots that we occasionally lose her sometimes. I think we are going to go with the Elibi, since I saw it in person today I really love it, and it should be fine as long as we add some more base rock like we are planning especially since we're moving up to a larger tank. Somewhere between 120-180g I think.

[Angel*Fish]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8220147#post8220147 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Kawaii
The angel we get will be very small and we will be upgrading to a larger tank in a year if it makes anyone happy. Maybe the sites are wrong but liveaquaria.com and marinedepotlive.com say that most dwarf angels are fine for a 30g anyways.

The sites are wrong. But they are aware of statistics like how many 30g tanks in America are presently in use compared to other sizes.

Of the angels that reach 3.9 inches, the coral beauty will adapt best to a 30g - none of the others which are 3.9 or bigger should be considered. Obviously if you're certain you will upgrade, a juvenile Centropyge would be ok for maybe a year.

It's important to be aware that some of these fish get larger than the usual 4 inches, though. Those would be bicolor(6), Eiblei (4.3), lemonpeel(5.5), Herald's(4.7), multispinus(5), keyhole(7.5), halfblack(4.7)

Also I don't believe Eibli's have great track records in reef tanks. it is not "hit and miss" or 50/50 with many of these - some are much, much more likely to go for your corals. Some corals are much less likely to be tasty to most/almost all C. angels. If you have brain type meaty corals, be very careful which angel you choose.

HTH

[SDguy]

Also take into account aggression. Dwarf angels aren't the friendliest, and in a 29, I'd really worry about aggression to any other tankmates. Argi's, though smallest and best suited for a tank that small, are known to be quite aggressive.

hth

[Kawaii]

As far as the Elibi with the reef, the tank will only have liverock and some frags that are too large for our other 29g so if he did nip I wouldn't really care. What do you think about aggressiveness though? He will be the last fish added to the tank, with the other tank mates being the two ocellaris clowns and the six line wrasse. In our other tank, our Coral Beauty has never bothered any of its tankmates before and we've had him for over 6 months.

[Angel*Fish]

IME CB's tend to be more mild mannered than some of the others - I've never owned an Eibli - seems like I've read that they are not among the swety-pies of the angel world- but one, added last would be fine with the group you describe - at least in a tank appropriate for its size - 55g+ -- (And in the 30g while still small)

[fisherette]

I would recomend a fishers angel. they are really small. Not as much color as the flamebacks or flames but still great "little" fish.

[Kawaii]

We're going to our LFS again today because they're getting in a huge shipment so hopefully they will have some more selection. Otherwise I can wait until the Elibi comes out of the hospital tank, but I'm not so sure I want to do that.

[SuperNerd]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8223766#post8223766 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Angel*Fish
The sites are wrong...how many 30g tanks in America are presently in use compared to other sizes.

Does this include central, north, and south? :D


I vote for argi too but they are aggressive once established.