Guitargod6453 Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 Hey guys, I have a 40 gallon breeder (really 45 gallons) (36"L 18"w 16"T) and was wondering if a small copperband butterfly would fit in the tank. (2" butterfly) The butterfly has been at my LFS for two weeks now and is already eating frozen food. Mysid shrimp, brine shrimp, clams necks, and black worms. I only have one other fish in the tank which is a 2" hawk fish, so competing for food wouldn't be a big factor. I run a high flow system with about 2600 GPH running in my tank. My tank is also a barebottom tank, with a nice skimmer, and I do a water change every weekend so bioload isn't a huge deal. Do you guys think this copperband butterfly could last a year or two in my tank?Until he gets to big and I need to get a bigger tank. Thanks Link to comment
sheen Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 Hmm Hmm.... Generally I believe you have to get at least a 55 gallon tank to properly house the fish. 40 would probably be okay. You might be able to get away with it. I would say go for it. Link to comment
Guitargod6453 Posted January 12, 2006 Author Share Posted January 12, 2006 Thanks sheen for the fast reply. I'm a fan of the not much rock, but a lot of corals and space in the tank, like I said this tank has really good flow about 65X, so the butterfly could have to swim against flow which might seem like he is in a bigger tank Does anyone have any opinons on that. I hope that made sense. Thanks Link to comment
Vashner Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 They are not known for living a long time. If you get 1-2 years out of it that would be great. I love all the butterflies.. they are so sweet a fish. Just there diet and they are picky. Link to comment
Guitargod6453 Posted January 12, 2006 Author Share Posted January 12, 2006 Yes, they are an awesome fish one of my favorites, but I don't know if it will be worth it to got through all the trouble of feeding it just to have it die in a couple of months, maybe I'll just go with some cool anthias. Does 3 Dispar Anthias sound too much for my size tank? Thanks Link to comment
Caesar777 Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 Yes, too many anthias. Also, never believe the store that the animal is feeding--have them feed it in front of you, always. Link to comment
Guitargod6453 Posted January 12, 2006 Author Share Posted January 12, 2006 Caesar I sent you a PM Link to comment
Vashner Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 That just it with saltwater fish. Most of them can't be bread in captivity. Those that are caught are used to haveing a tank about oh.. a billion gallons. They kind loose the will to live in most small tanks. In last 30 years I have flushed a lot of salt water and fresh water fish down. Another thing are the chemicals used to catch fish like butterfly. A lot of times they use stunning chemicals that can damage organs. Also a lot of reef fish have just quicker lifespans. Designed to breed fast and live in a burst of energy. Since it's all about kill or be killed on the reef... If you can get 2 years out of any captive saltware fish .. besides the daimsels your doing good. The oldest I have is a Texas Cichlid that's 6 years old and that's freshwater. Link to comment
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