Tangs for 200

[Karm40]

I'm trying to figure out what fish I will eventually have in my tank. My wife really likes the Powder Blue Tang and I was thinking about a Chevron, Clown, Purple, Desjardinii or Scopas.
Opinions?
Thanks,
Mark

 

[Anonymous]

I had a scopas for a while. It is a nice fish - typical of Zebrasoma, but it was a little hard to see, given its color. I should have gotten something more colorful. Eventually I took it back for credit.

 

[JohnD]

Mark,

I am not sure how much experience you have in this hobby, but many folks on this board recommend against powder blue tangs and Clown tangs.

I have a 10 year old hippo tang and a year old purple tang. The purple is small, but what a spectacular color!

I would strongly recommend you pick up Scott Michael's Marine Fishes: 500+... as a reference. He does not give a high grade to the clown tang, either.

HTH

 

[esmithiii]

The clown and powder blue tangs have notoriously poor survival rates in home aquaria.

Powder Blue Survival Poll

 

[naesco]

I keep tangs and agree 100% with esmithii.
Don't consider the powder blue, clown or gold rim tang as they do not do well in aquaria.
Choose one of the others and I recommend the garlic preventative treatment.

 

[esmithiii]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr> I keep tangs and agree 100% with esmithii.
<hr></blockquote>

It must be snowing in hades...

 

[kristofer1]

hey i'm new to keeping tangs, i just got my first regas tang. I have be strongly sugested to do the garlic treament as soon as they start eating to prvent ick. also when you add something new to the tank. Another ting was to buy only young tangs so the adjust to the aquarium life style better.

 

[rotorh60]

If this is your first experiance with salt, well then, try and heed what is posted here on this board, and other boards. It is your money

You have a one in ten chance of getting a Powder Blue to live longer than six months in your tank. I am like you, that I want one. But I also know the possible end result. If your LFS will hold one for two to three weeks, and you get to see it while they feed it, and it is doing rather well, then I say go for it. You might wind up being the exception not the rule. I done the same, LFS held PBT for 10 days, I saw him eat and brought him home only to watch him die a week later. I thought I done everything correct. So with PBT, it's buyer beware. Several may disagree, but I have seen tanks with them in there for a year or more. Bottom line, DO NOT BUY THE FIRST ONE YOU SEE! Show some restraint, and see if he/she will survive captivity first. On the other hand, I have kept a Yellow and Purple Tang together for two years with no problem what-so-ever. HTH

[ January 01, 2002: Message edited by: rotorh60 ]</p>

 

[Enkidu]

Why not a sohal? They are awesome fish and I can't see how a 200g tank would be too small for them.

 

[sillingw]

I have a 240 with a yellow and a naso tang - the yellow tang is probably the show fish and in hindsight, i should have gone for 4-5 yellow tangs, but since the yellow is now the dominant fish, i can't introduce any more yellow tangs without causing world war 3, the naso is also a nice fish though and the yellow and the naso get along well - the yellow has been with me for 9 months and the naso for 7 months - i don't use garlic (at least not in the tank!)

 

[Gatortailale1]

Atlantic Blue, Purple, Yellow and Hippo. Buy them about 3 inch size and introduce all at once or within a few days of the first ones.

 

[KenH]

In my 225, I have a Hippo, Kole and Yellow Tang. They constantly hang out together. The Kole is not as flashy as the rest, but is attractive and hardy.

I am tempted to try an achillies now that I have a large tank if I can find a nice healthy specimen. They tend to be delicate, though I am not sure if they are as bad as powder blues.

--- Ken

 

[Jade]

I've got 3 tangs in my 180g. A Yellow, Hippo, and a real nice Sailfin. They all "hang out together" and sometimes even swim in a small "school". Especialy the Yellow, and the Sailfin.

 

[danmhippo]

For 200G, I think 2-3 can be kept healthy. Any more than 3 may prove unstable. Stay away from naso and sohal as they grow faster then the others and requires a large open area to swim.

I have a hippo, purple, and a sailfin in a 150G.

 

[Karm40]

I wanted to revive this thread. I'm really trying to come up with a good combination of tangs for the 200. I think 3-4 would be a good amount. Problem is that I can't keep my favorite fish (Sohol). So, if you could pick 4 tangs for your reef, what would they be?
Thanks,
Mark

 

[Anonymous]

I think I'd go with a hippo, a chevron, and one of the Zebrasomas; either purple or yellow.
That'd make a nice colorful group.

 

[NasotheHutt]

Valamingi, yellow, purple, and hippo.

 

[wickedt]

How about a Convict Tang (Acanthurus triostegus)? Anyone have any experience them? I'm thinking about adding 3 of them to form a shoal (assuming they will shoal together), small ones about 2-3". The only other tangs currently in my tank (560g)are a Purple Tang (Zebrasoma xanthurum ) and a Yellow-eyed (Ctenochaetus strigosus) Tang, which are 4" and 6" repectively.

 

[Karm40]

OK, I took my son to the Aquarium of the Pacific today and we looked at tangs. I would love to get a Sohol, but I know how aggresive they are. I have a couple friend that have Powder Blues and have been lucky with them so far. Vlamingii are gorgeous, but also too large for my tank. Tank is 54x30x30, so there isn't a great deal of length for a tang to swim. In the big tank at Long Beach, there are a lot of Clown Tangs and they seem to be nice and thick. Do powder browns have white cheeks?
I'm now thinking about a powder brown, chevron, clown and don't yell, but an achilles. There is a black tang in the reef tank that is pretty cool. The idea is to quaranteen them all and add them at the same time.
Mark

 

[Marty M]

Good idea to quarantine and add them together. I would also stock all the other more peaceful fish a couple months in advance. You should give the Sohal the same consideration as the Clown Tang, as the Clowns are at least, and probably more, aggressive than a Sohal. The Achilles for that matter is closely related too, and is considered aggressive. That said, individual specimens vary a lot in temperment. I had no intention of getting a Sohal until I saw one that really stood out from the rest at the time. While the others were pacing their tanks, behaving like sociopaths, mine was calmly swimming and grazing. He was totally oblivious to his tankmates, while the others were terrorists. I took a chance and it paid off. Desirable or not, all the Sohals looked healthy. I haven't seen a decent looking, viable, Achilles for years, and only a very few Powder Blues. They're just overwhelmed by captivity. They always show ich, even in copper treated tanks. They're emaciated and extremely edgy. Now Nasos are an ideal fish if you have the space for them; very easy going. Once you coax them to start eating, they'll take anything you offer them. They get along with all fish, including other tangs, usually. They are a bit timid when small and will get just a little bigger than a Clown or Sohal; about 12-15 inches. I have an 8" Sohal, 8" Red Sea Sailfin, 6"Naso, and a 4" Regal that get along for the most part. All of the other fish hate the little Regal, wether they're tangs angels or clownfish. That kami steals food from the mouth of the Sohal, head to head. HTH