Royal Gramma and firefish not compatible?

[Guest beatle]

I read a post on RC about someone asking about proper firefish care. One person mentioned that they should not keep Royal Grammas with firefish and another person seconded the idea. I thought both were peaceful fish. Is there any truth to those two assertions?

[dzekunoi]

I read a post on RC about someone asking about proper firefish care. One person mentioned that they should not keep Royal Grammas with firefish and another person seconded the idea. I thought both were peaceful fish. Is there any truth to those two assertions?

 

 

Royal Grammas can be a little protective of their little place. You can not keep more than 1 of them in the same tank.

[Guest beatle]

Cannot keep more than one RG or cannot keep RG with a firefish? I'd planned to pick up a RG at some point, but not two. I have a 90g tank, FWIW.

[dzekunoi]

I do not know about RG and a firefish. Can not keep 2 RG as they will fight - means they can be aggressive towards same body shape fish.

[trble81]

could it be because of color similarities?

[Guest beatle]

I suppose that could be true since they have contrasting front and rear colors, though their colors are nothing alike. I'd just never heard this incompatability before.

[jason the filter freak]

i'm guessing more the shape, they're a lil diffrent in color, thought they're both two tone, and I assume fish are color blind?

[HowardofNOVA]

RG, Have seen a couple of tanks with more than one RG in them with little problems if put into tank at the same time. (Chip is perfect example)

Firefish as a pair work better than as a single, IMO, stay out in the open more! More than that, you end up with a pair anyways.

 

Mixing, I've had BOTH in at least 4 different tanks from 10g-75g, some only temporarily especially the smaller size with no problems!

 

Each fish has it's own personalities! I keep hearing about RG being so nasty, but as of today, NEVER seen it in person.

[stevil]

Firefish as a pair work better than as a single, IMO, stay out in the open more!

I had a pair of Firefish - Sid and Nancy... well, Nancy committed suicide (should have seen that one coming...) and now Sid is out and about. Before they used to hide in a hole together and only come out to eat.

[Guest beatle]

I've had mostly good luck with livestock. I had problems with a few shrimp and a firefish that jumped out, but other than that, I've not lost any fish... except royal grammas! Both RGs I purchased have given up hope upon entering my tank, often finding a very small crevice and staying there until they die. Hopefully I'll have good luck someday.

[jamesbuf]

I have a firefish with both a royal gramma and a purple pseudo and I've never had any issues. I personally think the larger the tank, the less problems you'll have. If you stick those 3 in a 75gal or less, yeah you'll have issues.

[jwildman]

I have a royal gramma and 2 firefish and have never seen them even notice each other. I would strongly disagree with anyone who says they do not get along.

 

John

[Bob]

I also have firefish and Royal Gramma together in a 150 gal. tank. The firefish are a trio, or better, a pair and a single that only occasionally squabble a little. The RG seems to leave them alone. The RG will occasionally bully a new fish, but once everyone settles down and get used to each other there is peace.

[davelin315]

Everything depends on tank size. Royal grammas can be kept singly or in groups, but it all depends on how much tank you have! If you are trying to squeeze two royal grammas into a small tank, forget it. If you are trying to squeeze several of them into a large tank, no problem. I am planning on having a few in my 300 when all is said and done. I would like to get 4, but we'll see, I'm not sure how they'd react. I know 2 would be easy. I have been to some large aquariums that have Caribbean displays and they I've seen then with 40-50 royal grammas that, although they are in a huge display, live in the same rock structure and hang out together without fighting. Also, I imagine that in these huge displays there's a chance that some of these grammas were bred in the huge systems (can't say for sure, but given the size differences, it would make sense).

 

Now, for firefish, it's a different story. Like Howard said, you'll end up with a pair pretty much every time unless, again, you have a huge system. In a small system, you're better off with 1. If you get a bigger system (let's say for the sake of this thread a 50+ gallon tank) you can have a pair. If you go with a huge tank, you could get more. They don't "school" but they can tolerate each other.

 

Now, with a royal gramma and a firefish, the same logic applies. Firefish are very skittish and will dart for cover and away from threats very quickly. They will be aggressive towards each other, but when something else comes along, they will run. Royal grammas are not exactly aggressive, but they put on a great show, and to a chicken of a fish like the firefish, a gaping mouth chasing after them is reason to bolt - often right out of the tank. I have mixed them successfully in a 58 but that's with tons of rockwork that allowed the firefish to go to the bottom of the tank and hide under the rocks. When I rearranged my rockwork and stacked it upright so that there was very little cover on the substrate, my firefish eventually disappeared. I think that they probably dove into the overflow without me knowing and I didn't check until they were long gone, but I can't be sure of this. All I know is that they disappeared never to be seen again (I have almost no opening on my tank at all). So, bottom line again is that a gramma will chase after a firefish and regardless of how peaceful it might be overall in not actually attacking, it's the show that matters. If it shows aggression, the firefish will jump or at the very least be spooked. The bigger the system, the more chance for them to avoid each other and the more you can rely on them co-existing peacefully.

 

Now, only part of this is based on actual experience while a lot of it is based on experience and observations that I've seen in other tanks, so don't hold me to this as the law, it's only an opinion, but I am pretty confident in my opinion on this. Bottom line, SIZE MATTERS!

[Guest beatle]

It seems to me that there's not really much taboo in mixing RGs with firefish, just a little concern. I've seen my midas blenny squabble with my purple firefish occasionally, but they don't bother each other much. The two responders on RC said "No grammas. Those two fish don't get along very well..." and "I second that, didn't know and my grammas killed a purple firefish." That sounds to me like "don't add clams to a puffer tank."

[davelin315]

It seems to me that there's not really much taboo in mixing RGs with firefish, just a little concern. I've seen my midas blenny squabble with my purple firefish occasionally, but they don't bother each other much. The two responders on RC said "No grammas. Those two fish don't get along very well..." and "I second that, didn't know and my grammas killed a purple firefish." That sounds to me like "don't add clams to a puffer tank."

 

Do you know what size tanks they had by any chance? I would think that they had smaller tanks and tried to mix them in too small an environment, but who knows, every fish has a personality.

 

Also, if you are concerned about it, get assessors instead! I haven't seen them very often, but I used to have a yellow assessor and a blue assessor and they acted just like royal grammas (they're closely related I believe) nd didn't mess with anything. They made grammas look like a blue line trigger! Also, they did a lot more hanging upside down and sideways in the tank than any gramma I've ever had so they added tons of cool character to the tank.

[Guest beatle]

One has a 29g and one has a 45g. Here's the thread on Reef Central. I'd never seen assessors before. They're cool looking, but I've always wanted a contrasty fish like the gramma since I saw them as a kid. Actually, I think I fell in love with a yellow tail damsel when I was younger, but I'd rather chance a gramma in my tank.

[davelin315]

Most of the people posting problems had small tanks. You have a 90, you'll be just fine. Go with a pair of firefish and one gramma.