cherub/pygmy angelfish compatability

[treesprite]

I currently still have no fish. This would be for a 50 gallon 36"Lx18"Wx20"H Oceanic with front Starfire glass. I put the corals in over a month ago. It was up just half filled for about a month prior to that, with a couple pieces of rock but no livestock. There are lots of pods crawling around with nothing to eat them.

 

I think I will have to get a cherub (pygmy) angel to control algae in this size of a tank, because I don't want any of the alternative fish species. The cherub angel will also give me blue color. I have had this species of fish twice in the past, so I already know what they are like; I am just wanting compatibility feedback for the other fish I have been considering.

 

Since the angel will be all over the place, dashing around, disrespectful of territory of all other creatures, I need to make sure that any other fish I get won't be terribly intimidated or annoyed.

 

Orchid dottyback OR pair of purple firefish?

-I had an orchid dottyback before with a cherub angel, and they were okay together. But the orchid dottyback is over $50 for a single fish, and getting a bonded pair would be highly unlikely to happen.

- The purple firefish is less expensive per fish, and it is easier to get a pair if I want 2 of them. Problem is, I don't know how well they would be able to tolerate the typical cherub angel behavior, so I need to hear other people's experiences.

- I have other questions for comparison of these fish, but at the moment just thinking of compatibility with cherub angel.

 

Ocellated dragonets pair.

- when I have had these fish in the past, they didn't seem to have one specific home territory, which makes me think they wouldn't feel invaded upon by a nosy cherub angel. However, I have not had the two species together, so I need to have feedback from folks who had had that experience.

 

Something yellow.

- What small fish is yellow, won't hurt corals, will be okay with cherub angel and other fish mentioned, and won't cost a lot for a single fish? I don't want a yellow goby, because they harm branching sps corals (known from experience).

 

I am really concerned about spending a lot on fish, only to then have the fish die right after purchase. I wouldn't be so concerned about prices of fish if I felt more confident about the fish living.

 

Also, does anyone know which, if not all, all of those fish can be had captive bred or raised?

Edited February 3, 2018 by treesprite

[treesprite]

So, I did some research. I am now planning to get the cherub angel, an orchid dottyback (maybe a pair?), and some small yellow fish that is not an SPS nester (meaning I do not want a clown goby).

 

The firefish would have had trouble with the angel. I don't think I can get the ocellated dragonets pair, because the dottyback would be competing with them for pods (the ocellated dragonets I've had in the past ate prepared foods, but I wouldn't want to risk getting a picky eater).

[sethsolomon]

Where are you going that an orchid dotty is $50?  you can find them all the time for $20-$30...

the dottyback is going to be fairly aggressive in a tank that small. Good alternative is a royal gramma at 1/2 to 1/3 the price. and is bright purple and yellow  or a black cap basset, much more peaceful than a dottyback  but on average a bit more cost.  

 

Good fish that are yellow:

Midas blenny, Canary blenny, yellow watchman goby, yellow head jawfish, hector goby, Yellow stripe cardinals, black mouth bicolor chromis, yellow goatfish(can snack on your hermit crabs like wrasses)

 

As for not wanting to spend lots of money on fish if they will die, do you have any QT or observation tanks?  having 1-2 well cycled 20g longs with sand and pvc/rock to hide in can do wonders for surviveability. I have 3x 20g longs I have set up for bringing in rare and expensive wrasses and I have a 100% success rate keeping them by them selves for 2-4 weeks before adding them in groups into the main tank.  Durring this 2-4 weeks I get them transitioned from live or pods over to prepared foods (ideally pellet food).  sometimes it can take a bit longer but it allows them to de-stress from being in the petshops or from being shipped.

 

EDIT: Scratch the goatfish forgot they get to 7 inches ish.

Edited February 6, 2018 by sethsolomon

[treesprite]

The orchid dottyback is the one that is not aggressive. More aggressive species get mislabeled in stores as orchid dottyback, people buy them and lose all their other fish, hence think that orchid dottyback are as aggressive as the others. I have seen the mis-labelling twice in LFS and once in Petco.

 

Blue Zoo Aquatics has captive bred regular price $69, current sale $55. I noticed later that some places online have them for between 35 and 39. I am a bit hesitant to buy the fish from online, and I'm not having fish shipped this time of year. I need to explore local options first.

 

As far as QT goes, I keep several emty tanks sitting sitting around for random use puroses, plus 3 or 4 HOB filters of various sizes. Yesterday I stuck some filter sponges in my fuge to populate with bacteria in preperation.

 

Thanks for the suggestions. I will look those fish up.

Edited February 6, 2018 by treesprite

[Jon Lazar]

I am a bit hesitant to buy the fish from online, and I'm not having fish shipped this time of year. I need to explore local options first.

 

Buying fish online isn't for everyone, but IME it's very safe for the fish. We've bought 20 fish online for the new aquarium in the past month, and every single one made it without a hitch and is doing well despite the cold weather. We do our part and make sure we're home to receive the fish and acclimate them promptly.

 

The Live Aquaria franchise (LA, DD, ORA) monitors the weather forecast and will automatically reschedule a shipment if they anticipate weather delays.

 

We typically ordered a mix of Diver's Den, Live Aquaria, and ORA, and each facility ships separately. So those 20 fish represent 10 separate shipments. 

We typically ordered a mix of Diver's Den, Live Aquaria, and ORA, and each facility ships separately. So those 20 fish represent 10 separate shipments. 

[sethsolomon]

The orchid dottyback is the one that is not aggressive. More aggressive species get mislabeled in stores as orchid dottyback, people buy them and lose all their other fish, hence think that orchid dottyback are as aggressive as the others. I have seen the mis-labelling twice in LFS and once in Petco.

 

Blue Zoo Aquatics has captive bred regular price $69, current sale $55. I noticed later that some places online have them for between 35 and 39. I am a bit hesitant to buy the fish from online, and I'm not having fish shipped this time of year. I need to explore local options first.

 

As far as QT goes, I keep several emty tanks sitting sitting around for random use puroses, plus 3 or 4 HOB filters of various sizes. Yesterday I stuck some filter sponges in my fuge to populate with bacteria in preperation.

 

Thanks for the suggestions. I will look those fish up.

Yah blue zoo has a bad track record. I would currently only order from live aquaria. I have lost many "expert only" fish from blue zoo but order them same fish from live aquaria no issues what so ever.

 

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[sethsolomon]

 

 

As far as QT goes, I keep several emty tanks sitting sitting around for random use puroses, plus 3 or 4 HOB filters of various sizes. Yesterday I stuck some filter sponges in my fuge to populate with bacteria in preperation.

 

Thanks for the suggestions. I will look those fish up.

I recomend having them set up for a month or 2 in advance. Or ideally always running. This allows the tank to naturally cycle and pod populations to build up. The pods act as a nice buffer zone in case the fish are not eating and gives you more time to get them transitioned to prwpared foods/ try several live foods to reduce the stress.

 

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[treesprite]

 

 

I recomend having them set up for a month or 2 in advance. Or ideally always running. This allows the tank to naturally cycle and pod populations to build up. The pods act as a nice buffer zone in case the fish are not eating and gives you more time to get them transitioned to prwpared foods/ try several live foods to reduce the stress.

 

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What I usually do is put in pieces of rock from my sump or fuge that I can later dry out to kill off bad stuff before putting them back into my system.

 

I see no need to have a QT up running way in advance, when basically setting one up is just a transfer of stuff from the established system.