Which fish will do?

[EnchantedSea]

Ok, I have a 65 gal reef and I want to add more fish. This is what I currently have:
Flame Angel, maroon clown, purple dottyback(which I hate, but can't catch), scooter blenny, blue lincka star, emerald crab and coral banded shrimp. Corals are: frogspawn, green hammer, xenias, mushrooms and green leather. I would like to add 2 or 3 green chromis and possibly a blue palette tang. I heard you are supposed to add the most aggressive fish last, but... Would these fish adjust? opinions please

 

[Tremelle]

Yes, you are supposed to add the most aggresive fish last. But in the real world, people add them when they find them at a price they like. Green Chromis are not aggresive fish, so they can be added at anytime.

Some will also say that a 65 gallon is too small for a tang, which is true if it is an adult. That will depend on the size of the tang you get.

 

[Anonymous]

The Chromis are an excellent choice, but not two. Go for 3, 5, or more than 5. Banggai Cardinals would also be a good choice.

[ July 16, 2001: Message edited by: Guy ]

 

[EnchantedSea]

Ok, After taking down my whole reef I finally caught the purple dottyback (God, I hated that fish). Anyway I added 3 green chromis. My question is: I thought these fish were docile? They get along fine with my other fish, but one of the three is a real bully. Is this normal? Or are they adjusting to their new environment?

 

[Anonymous]

Most likely you bought three females, this is desireable. The females will battle it out to determine who is dominant. This dominant female will become a male and the battling will stop.

The normal chromis shoal has one male, two breading females and a whole bunch of immature females. This is why I suggested not getting 2 or 4. If you have 2 then it is an incomplete shoal. If you have 4 then the two breeding females are going to constantly pick on the immature female and it will probably die. With 5 or more the squabbling is spread over the rest of the shoal so that no one individual is singled out to be picked on.

HTH

Guy

 

[EnchantedSea]

Wow! I knew that Anthias changed sexes but I had no idea that the chromis did. Interesting. How long does it take for them to change? Is their a way to tell the difference? I really like these guys. They look pretty good in the tank. Also, since I took out the purple dottyback everything is peaceful again. Thanks for the suggestion and reasons why. Everyday I learn something new.

 

[Anonymous]

It takes a couple of weeks for the sex change to take place. I'm not sure how to tell them apart in general. My male is openly dominent and happens to have some black highlights on his dorsal an pectoral fins.