NorthGaHillbilly Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Ok, Ill take the bait. Depends on what kind of fish, you could have a huge angler fish if you could keep up with the bio load, but a 4" sailfin tan would be uncomfrotable to say the least. Link to comment
badwhiskey Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 Or what is the largest you could keep in this size tank and not be cruel....wrasses? Link to comment
Halo_003 Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Big fish in a tank make it look small. IMO, choose a fish list, base your choices on LiveAquaria's fish tank size recommendations. Then check here. It's hard to say exactly honestly. Link to comment
afyounie Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Clown tang. But for real, I agree with Halo_003. Pick fish proportionally correct for your tank and your tank will look bigger. I say schools of fish. School of chromis, firefish, and cardinals. Keep the chromis well fed with an auto feeder and they will do well. They really only start killing each other when food is slim. Link to comment
Roshan8768 Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Chromis are boring. You can do most of the flashers and some other wrasses as well. You can do a small tang for 2-3 years atleast... you just have to manage food availability, real estate, and aggression Link to comment
llama roadkill Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 I've read Kole Tangs seem to fare well in tanks around that size or larger, but probably not long term. Try to find a small one. Link to comment
afyounie Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Chromis are boring. You can do most of the flashers and some other wrasses as well. You can do a small tang for 2-3 years atleast... you just have to manage food availability, real estate, and aggression Chromis are boring if you have 1. You can't appreciate them until you keep a group and watch them interact with each other. Same goes with firefish. Its a shame when people keep only 1. I have 3 and they constantly flick those tall dorsals in sync and school together. The wrasses are great singly or in a group. In a group you get to see so much more personality. Link to comment
Roshan8768 Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Chromis are boring if you have 1. You can't appreciate them until you keep a group and watch them interact with each other. Same goes with firefish. Its a shame when people keep only 1. I have 3 and they constantly flick those tall dorsals in sync and school together. The wrasses are great singly or in a group. In a group you get to see so much more personality. I've tried groups before on 2 occasions... they didn't last even though they got plenty of food. Firefish can be tricky to keep as eventually 2 will pair off and beat on the other one unless you have a large tank. All I'm saying is there aren't too many "Schooling fish" in saltwater. If you want that look, go for freshwater tetras. JMO Link to comment
SchnauzerFace Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 From the way the question is worded, it sounds like you just want one large fish rather than several smaller fish? If I were to get a 40b and stock it with one big thing, I'd probably think about a snowflake eel or dwarf lionfish. Both are probably kiiiiiinda pushing it in a tank that size, but I think you could make either work. I've always wanted an eel, so it could just be my personal bias with that suggestion. Of course I don't know your level of reef keeping experience, but I would be remiss if I didn't mention that both of these have special needs and lots of research should be done in advance. If you're looking to get a lot of activity, many above suggestions are great. Someone suggested a school of cardinals, which would fit well in that size tan. I kind of regret getting our two pajama cardinals, though, because they're kind of boring fish. But if you got a big school of them it might be more fun. Link to comment
ajmckay Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Not a very good question IMO... For example you can put a grouper that's 3' long in a 40b while it's tiny... Ultimately though putting a large fish into a 40b isn't a great idea. Not having enough space tends to stunt their growth - but not in a good way, in an unnatural way. A lot of it has to do with their bodies, which are expecting a certain amount of nutrition that you just can't provide in a small tank because they'll either grow too big or the excess nutrients cant be removed quick enough which results in bad water quality. The result is a mis-shapen or deformed, dull colored, sickly looking fish. A better question would be to ask about a specific fish you're interested in keeping or ask about what kind of fish people put in their 40breeders. With such a vague question people are going to waste their time giving you advice you don't want or many people simply won't respond. So please try to be a bit more specific in your topics. I would say that a 40b is not appropriate for any of the 'big fish'. About the biggest I would consider is possibly a maroon clown - which can get to about 6" but they typically don't need a ton of swimming space. A dwarf angel might be another larger looking fish - some of those can get 4-6" but be prepared to deal with the nutrients from feeding. There are plenty of fish in the 3-6" range that would also be appropriate as have been mentioned. Also a moray eel could also be a possibility, though that would make it essentially a species tank. If you really want a big fish - like over 6" then I would plan a tank around that kind of fish. Link to comment
Cencalfishguy56 Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 Clown tang. But for real, I agree with Halo_003. Pick fish proportionally correct for your tank and your tank will look bigger. I say schools of fish. School of chromis, firefish, and cardinals. Keep the chromis well fed with an auto feeder and they will do well. They really only start killing each other when food is slim. Finally saw a clown tang in person, the thing is badass! Link to comment
badwhiskey Posted March 21, 2015 Author Share Posted March 21, 2015 From the way the question is worded, it sounds like you just want one large fish rather than several smaller fish? If I were to get a 40b and stock it with one big thing, I'd probably think about a snowflake eel or dwarf lionfish. Both are probably kiiiiiinda pushing it in a tank that size, but I think you could make either work. I've always wanted an eel, so it could just be my personal bias with that suggestion. Of course I don't know your level of reef keeping experience, but I would be remiss if I didn't mention that both of these have special needs and lots of research should be done in advance. If you're looking to get a lot of activity, many above suggestions are great. Someone suggested a school of cardinals, which would fit well in that size tan. I kind of regret getting our two pajama cardinals, though, because they're kind of boring fish. But if you got a big school of them it might be more fun. I have trouble finding the right words..you guys have answered my question. Link to comment
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