Way back there was some discussion about lion fish. I had a Comet Grouper that I fed guppies to on a stick (not live) and silver sides. The only live food it got was Ghost shrimp. I kept it with a Blood Shrimp, a few Yellow tail Damsels, very small (1cm) Lemon Damsels and never had any issues. Simply posting because of the mention of feeding method affecting food choice. I had many people tell me that I could not keep these fist together but, well, I did. Comet Groupers and Lion fish have the same sort of eating habits (if it fits it's food) but they may not have the same attitude I don't know. I did have a Dwarf Volitan that seemed to be following the same patterns, if I was there it was food. Unfortunately the dwarf met his end on a too large piece of krill and never got big enough to take the Damsels, so I didn't get to see if it's feeding habits would change with size.

How big was the comet? It's a bit of a stretch to use observations on a comet, which usually are considered reclusive, kept with damsels, which aren't passive fish, and make a claim about lionfish, which aren't closely related.

ok i have a quick question.
i currently have a 20 long
based on this guide I can have a maroons?
that's all I want for fish.
I'm just very curious because I dont want to make a mistake and have the fish suffer for it.
thank you for any responses

to N-R!

I think you might be able too. Start out with small ones though.

i wans't aware that tankbred blackcap basslets were available. is this correct or a typo? i'd considered one since they are fascinating but had always heard they were hard to collect and notoriously poor shippers. im kinda new at this so have strayed away from that species but would be really into a tankbred variety. can anyone confirm the validity of this? a google search yielded nothing so i'm thinking it is a typo or the author is mistakenly referring to one of the other tankbred varieties of basslets

Fantastic thread!! Great for us beginners! I have a 28Gal AIO Aqua Euro Nano. Am I correct that I should use the 20Gal guide for stocking fish and not the 30Gal?

Igreen- This thread was very helpful for me a couple of years ago when I was stocking my first reef tank. I still revisit it now and then and it is as helpful as ever. Well played!

Great to hear streetsong!


Post number 15,000 for me! lol

needs diamond goby!!!1!!!!!!111!!!ONE111111

Diamond gobies shouldn't be kept in nanos. Sorry.

They get too big and sand sifting gobies typically starve in nano tanks.

smallest tank you could keep one in?

Igreen thanks for the good read. I think you should consider adding the pink streaked/cryptic wrasse. Although very similar to the 4 and 6 lines, I think the pink has a much more friendly demeanor and very well suited for the nano game. I'd be interested in you input. Thanks

excellent write up. thank you!

Best thread for newbies.....Thanks L



AND 1,000x YES they will starve.

Added

Tanaka's Pygmy Wrasse and White Banded Possum Wrasse have a minimum recommended tank size of 10 gallons. Perhaps someone may consider keeping this small wrasse in a 10+ gallon tank.

Will check into that and add them. Thanks.

New to this hobby. Been reading the forum for a couple of months now. Just wanted to say this was very informational and helpful.

Thanks

yellow tang in 30 gallon. mine is great. but thats my only large fish

Just read all 19 pages. I'm tired. Very fine work and difficult to do considering all the different opinions on stocking that are out there. I've got a 36g nano-reef in the works and it's a useful guide to spot check my research. Can't stress to newbies enough, though, to do your own research and read some books first. It'll help you immensely with the scientific names and the general habits of the fish you keep. lgreen can't do everything for you, nor should he, nor should you use his guide, as wonderful as it is, to replace your own research.

Just my two cents. Having written my own articles on Planted Tanks.

My 36g will be featuring chalk bass (Serranus tortugarum). The lit I've read says they are passive zooplankton feeders and only pose a problem for the small Periclimenes species, but lit can be inaccurate. I'll have to confirm, as I'd like a small group of these fish, which the lit says is ok too.

Bill Hader fan, huh? Stefon is my favorite... "New York's hottest club is BOOOOOOOOOF... with nine "O"s..."

Thanks for the guide.

Liz

... It's that thing where a jacked up midget ...

Haha love Stefon!

Thanks for the guide lgreen I also have to agree with Liz as I just finished buying a few reef books and after reading a few chapters learned more in depth than lurking on these forums for the past year or so!

Banji Cardnals and Bicolor Blennys do very well in a 10g. I had a clown/Banji/Bicolor combo in my 13 gallon biocube. They all did very well. I suggest adding the Banjis and Bicolors to the 10g list

There's no list for 5 gallons ?

It's there.

Jaguar Goby. They only grow up to 2". The body is elongated and banded like a dogfish but they have round fins and a pudgy face like a catfish complete with little bumps on the chin.

I have one in a 10 gallon that comes out to eat. Most of the time I read about them someone says they see their jag once every 3 months... I push flakes or thawed mysis shrimp over near his "lair" and he sticks out his face watching the stick for awhile before coming out and snagging it.

He's dug out this area under the flat bottom of this hunk of Real Reef so it goes clear through to the other side and he pretty much stays under there until I slide the lights back to lift the lid and turn off the powerheads.

He's a real sweety who doesn't have a mean bone in his body. He was getting picked on by a red-headed goby that I gave to a fish store and the whole experience kinda traumatized him into not coming out until I bought a 3/4" baby green-banded goby last weekend. Named him Raphael after the Ninja Turtle (green body, red bandanna). Like magic the jag's popping back out now that there's someone to show him the coast is clear but won't bully him.

So near as I can tell if they're not getting picked on they'll do just fine, but if you stick them in a big tank you'll never see them. He never travels further than a few inches from his lair so I'd say you can list Jaguar Gobies under 5 gallon or even less. I don't think a 2.5 would be a problem considering mine is already confining himself to a space just as if not smaller, but they do love to hide. So if you stick them in a big tank, and I'm talking 20 gallons up, you won't see much if any of him. And if you stick him in something small give him lots of hiding places to squeeze through and dig under. The spot he has now is a mostly flat rock with depressions in it and a slight overhang sitting on top of deep sand.

I spot feed mine to cut down on waste from exes food, but he feeds more like CUC than a fish; he comes sniffing about this one patch of sand where I always stick the stuff and if he sees it moving he'll pluck it from the water up to a couple of inches off the sand or pick it up off the ground, but he won't go to the surface. I don't think they have good vision, tiny eyes on a chunky pudgy head just like a catfish.

They won't hurt inverts, if anything inverts are likely to hurt them. The peppermint shrimp was poking at him so it could get some food so when the jag got tired of it he went back into hiding.

If I don't post this now it'll just keep growing!