What are your favorite reef fish?

[Dyngoe]

Hi All,

I'm starting to put fish back in my tank and I need to decide on a few more. So, I'm looking for suggestions on fish that you like. One condition is that they can't be "too" expensive. Ideas I've had:
Powder Blue Tang
Powder Brown Tang
Fairy Wrasse

Any ideas you want to send me? Thanks for the help.

BTW, where would you buy the fish?

 

[iani]

What is "too expensive"?

 

[Whisk]

i recently got a sixline wrasse for my nano, i have enjoyed his personality a lot and find it amusing to see him peek into holes to look for goodies. I heard they can be bullies but so far he has gotten along with my firefish.

i havent had any experience with a powered tang but they are definitely one of my favorites for looks alone ;D good luck

 

[zambavi]

My favorites.... Peaceful, hardy, reef safe and not too expensive

Cardinals
Firefish
Swallowtail Angel (100+ gallons)
Chromis
Midas Blenny
Tail Spot Blenny
Carpenter Wrasse
Neon Goby
Clowns
Bartlett Anthias (Not always easy but peaceful and reefsafe)
Also like Dispar and Ignitus Anthias

 

[CookieJar]

Scooter blenny (if you have enough pods)
Tail spot blenny
Jawfish
Clowns
Firefish

all stay pretty small

 

[LeviT]

We loved out Long Nose Hawk Fish. He would just kick it on the rock work and hang out. Not like a lot of smaller fish that hide. But he jumped on us

 

[Gomer]

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6line




/hides

 

[Jombo]

I don't know what you consider expensive, but I'm a big fan of Gobies! I really like the Yasha Goby. I also like those flasher wrasses. I like the smaller fish, as long as they're hardy, reef-safe, and peaceful.

 

[sfsuphysics]

Powder blue tang might be a mean SOB, not sure if the Powder browns have a similar temperament. Flasher wrasses are always a nice alternative, SOME anthias are nice, I love my clown fairy wrasse (solon) fairly inexpensive and not aggressive. I'm a sucker for the bristletooth tangs, Tomini might not have the over all super color (its body is mostly a brownish) but the orange flame tips look nice, chevron is a nice one too but a bit pricey. Some of the blennies (Midas, Bicolor, etc) do have a nice look to them as well. I mean hell there are tons of "nice looking fish" its just a matter of what you really see as nice... and inexpensive

 

[tuberider]

Foxface

 

[seminolecpa]

si foxface. especially the platinum (magnificant) ones.
Kole tang -friggin algae munching machine

 

[Elite]

Clownfish.. ;D

 

[A_Lee]

Tail Spot Blenny, all the way.

 

[xcaret]

Powder Blue; I´ll get one ... some day

 

[xinumaster]

Pair of nemo, especially TP.

 

[Dyngoe]

Thanks for the insight everyone.

I agree with Jeremy and Bryan, I too like the foxface and I may be getting one soon. You there Levi? ;D

Mike, I too heard P Blues can be pricks. I had a P Brown I was nursing back to health and then lost him to a power outage over night. Window was open slightly, tank hit 61 degrees...looked like Gettysburg in the morning but a few survived and are going back to the reef shortly.

OK, I'll open up the discussion a little and say, "What would you add to this list?"
6 Chromis
False Percula
Yellow Coris Wrasse
Algae Blenny
Yellow Watchman Goby
Psychedelic Mandarin
Banggai Cardinalfish
Royal Gramma
Firefish
Flame Angel
2 Anthias of unknown type

Ideas for balancing out these fish? That's why I was thinking tang because it's kind of a slow, wandering type fish as opposed to the neurotic tendencies of the rest.

 

[A_Lee]

Get two Perculas

 

[bluetang_2000]

the si foxface looks nice, now i want one too.

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+1465+2287&pcatid=2287

 

[aalhait]

Dyngoe,

My advice is to stay away from the powder blue tangs, go for a purple or yellow tang instead. Powder blues tend to attract ich. I've had at least 4 die on me in the past 18 months. I almost gave up, and got one recently because i just love them too much, and placed it in my 20G tank just to see how it does, and it did not take too long before ich appeared! So my advice is stay away!

PS. I got that old Neptune AC from you which never did work but now I have a really nice AC3 Pro with EVERYthing under the sun. Including a really nice iPhone AquaNotes app which allows me to monitor and control the tank Pretty sweet!

I recommend: Cardinals, six line wrasse, some gobies, firefish and a royal gramma. As for tangs:

I have a yellow (big boss) blonde nasso, blue (which I kicked out into the 20G for eating my Zoas) Flag Fin and I recommend getting a Flame Angel (not a coral beauty).

PS. I've kept as many as 20 fish in a 150G happy in peace.
a Percula Clown, a Pink Clown, 5 Tangs: Powder Blue, Blue, Blonde Naso, Flag Fin, Yellow, 2 Angels: Flame, Coral Beauty, 4 Cardinals, 2 purple firefish, 4 gobies, Royal Gramma, 6-line Wrasse.

PS. do not get 2 perculas unless they are a couple/mated. They will fight until one of them is dead!


As for a place to buy them... My recommendation: http://www.liveaquaria.com (best prices and great weekly sales) and if you want local: Aquarium Showroom in SJ.

 

[Natterjak]

I just recently got a blue jaw trigger, and it's a pretty cool fish. It's so cute, and so far has a nice personality.

As for tangs, my only experience is with the hippo and blonde naso I have. I love the hippo, but she's big, mean, and neurotic. Definitely does not meander! The naso is a cool fish, mellow-ish personality, isn't neurotic like the hippo, likes to come and pose when I have the camera out. But it does like to coast back and forth, so I think these guys need a fairly long tank.