Hearty Saltwater Fish

daysleeper15 · 01-28-2002, 03:06 PM

About a year ago I tried to start a reef tank with fish, but the guy at the LFS talked me out of it because I had never even kept freshwater fish. He suggested that I start with a heraty fresh water fish and see how it goes since they are generally easier to keep than saltwater fish. So I got an oscar, very hearty, easy to keep fish that can take a little abuse from a beginner. Now that I have kept the fish successfully I would like to start a 25 gallon reef tank with fish. Again I would like to start with a hearty fish than can handle moderate fluctuations in water temperature and parameters. Can anyone out there recommend a good starter fish?

Thanks in advance

MontanaRocknReefer · 01-28-2002, 03:30 PM

Hey daysleeper15! Damsels are a very hardy fish to start with and here is some links to check out:

http://www.actwin.com/fish/species/i...p?t=8&c=12&f=2
http://faq.thekrib.com/sbegin-fish.html

I would also recommend you start with as large a tank you can afford.

You will eventually want more fish and they are alot easier to maintain.

Also if you do decide to get other fish I would return the damsels as they are very terriotial and can be a pest. The only one I would consider keeping is the blue devil. HTH Johnny

OodleyBoodely · 01-28-2002, 04:04 PM

Hi, Daysleeper! You could always go with a pair of captive bred clownfish. They are hardy, personable, and beautiful. They do not need an anemone to do great in captivity(anemones need very specific care and should only be kept by very experienced reefer-if even then). Many clownfish will adopt a coral such as bubble coral or soft leathers, or, even a clump of algae. A smaller species such as Amphiprion oscellaris (common/false percula), or, A. percula (true percula), would be ideal as the main attraction in a 25g. A 25 won't allow you to keep much more than clowns, but, once the tank is fully matured you could probably get by with one or two more very small fish, such as neon/clown/citron gobies, bi-color blenny, or, perhaps a sixline wrasse. Just some suggestions.

FishDaddy · 01-28-2002, 05:02 PM

Hi Daysleeper,

Good to have you with us!
While you are in the planning stage, I would like to recommend you buy and read The Conscientious Marine Aquarist, by Robert Fenner, before making any decisions or purchases. Unless, of course, you already have the book. Fenner gives great info for starting a tank and a selection and care guide for many aquarium fish. For corals, Aquarium Corals by Eric Borneman is a "must have".

Are you committed to the 25 gal. aquarium? If not, I would concur with Johnny and Oodley that the bigger the tank, the better. Unlike freshwater, where 1" of fish per gallon is the norm, the general rule of thumb for marine fish is 1" of adult sized fish per 5 gallons. Maintaining the excellent water quality and chemistry necessary for coral health generally dictates a lower bioload than fish-only setups. Again, these are only general guidelines but illustrates the need for large tanks if you want to keep fish of any size.

Another tip for tank selection is the front to back depth. More depth allows better aquascaping and room for a sump under the tank. If you get a larger tank, avoid the standard 55. (I have one

) as it's narrow depth definitely limits your options. If you decide on a larger tank, IMHO, the 75 is an almost ideal size for a first reef setup.

If a small tank is necessary for you, the 29 or 38 are better dimensions as the 36" length gives more swimming room for your fish and allows more room for separation of corals. Corals do sting one another and space is important.

Back to your question, I agree that Percula or Ocellaris Clowns are ideal first fish. They are hardy, colorful, and interesting to watch.

Be prepared for this all to take time and patience and reading will reap rewards for you.

Here are some links to good articles and FAQ's for beginning a reef and fish selection:
http://saltyzoo.com:8081/

http://faq.thekrib.com/sbegin.html
http://www.thereeftank.com/article/
http://www.animalnetwork.com/fish/li...=&RecordNo=267
http://www.animalnetwork.com/fish2/a.../1/default.asp

There's much more in our archives and articles, but these will give you a good beginning, coupled with the books recommended.

And importantly, please ask questions......we were all beginners once.

Dick

Alice · 01-28-2002, 08:58 PM

Welcome to The Reef Tank, daysleeper15!

Not much to add to the advice given above; checking out the links, the books and posts on this board will give you some basis for comparison when decision time comes. It's good that your LFS (Local Fish Store) advised you to go slow, just always remember to explore all your options rather than just the ones given to you from one source

Alice

hooked · 01-28-2002, 09:33 PM

Welcome,

I agree with everybody, go bigger if in your budget. I have a 38g and wish I had a bigger tank but I already put it in wall when I remodeled my basement. I have a clown fish and they area nice to the eye. Very relaxing to sit and watch them compared to freshwater.

Good luck,

Jim

mikeMersot · 01-29-2002, 09:45 AM

I would start out with damsels, they can live through just about anything, BTW what sort of tank do you have the oscar in right now? Personally I wouldnt have gotten an oscar just to learn, because they are a long-time commitment and can live to be about 15 years old, plus they need very large tanks.

Allyson · 01-29-2002, 10:44 AM

I agree....I can't believe they sold you an Oscar as a learning fish. Although they can be hearty they are also prone to parasites.....on the other hand that being the case, along with the fact that they do better with live food (especially as they get bigger) and you're limited to what fish you can put with them, I guess it kind of gives you an idea of the work that's put into a reef tank.

As far as a first fish for your reef I'd go with clowns. They're very active, beautiful and you won't have to get rid of them later.

daysleeper15 · 01-29-2002, 01:59 PM

Wow, thanks for all of your advice. I will definetely check out "The Conscientious Marine Aquarist". I have not read any books on the topic yet; that was going to be my next post. As for the tank situation I can go bigger.

To the later posts, knowing nothing about oscars, I bought 2 tiger o's on the recommendation of the LFS and dumped them into my 90 gallon tank. I was told that they could handle swings in water temp. and parameters that occompany a first time hobbiest. They were right, in the beginning water temp would vary from like 70 - 85 degrees and the o's didn't seem to mind, actually they are a very personable fish (will even let you pet them). As I got settled and read more about the fish I realized that I was in for a big commitment, these guys are going to be around for a long time, they are messy eaters, they are prone to get HITH -- it's like having a bad roomate.

Thanks folks, many more questions to come once I get the whole thing set up.

Allyson · 01-29-2002, 02:09 PM

Hey just wanted to make sure I didn't scare you away from the oscars. They are great fish especially in a 90 gal. I had an oscar dedicated tank many years ago and it was one of my favorites because of them being personable as well as their beauty...especially when they get larger. How big are yours? Other good fish to keep with them that are totally cool & beautiful are Green Terrors and Jack Dempseys. As far as the HITH thing if you keep an eye on them and treat them quickly they can make it.

daysleeper15 · 01-29-2002, 02:15 PM

Hey Anix, that is so funny, I started the tank with 6 fish. 2 o's, 2 green terrors (you are right they are beautiful) and 2 jd's. The terrors died in like the first two weeks and I never replaced them. Today I have four fish (all from the original setup); the o's are like 7 and 8 in. and the jd's are 5 and 6 in.

Allyson · 01-29-2002, 02:47 PM

Ooops...there i go again not absorbing the entire post before responding. I didn't snap to the fact that you'd had the oscars for a year.

Good luck with the reef....it's alot of hard work but in the end it feels great to sit back and admire you're little piece of the ocean. As it goes mine is still in the making!

mikeMersot · 01-29-2002, 03:41 PM

Here is a pic of my oscars, from left to right Prinzen(10 in,3yrs), Konig,(12in, 6yrs), and Kaiser(13in, 6yrs) in their 150XH. Also I have 2 blue Africans and a Bumblebee, plus a couple feeders that got a little too big bottomfeeding. While they are young like yours you can also teach them to do tricks like play fetch and swim through hoops and stuff. Keeping oscars and keeping a reef are a totally different ball game though, you will have to relearn much and retrain your habits. good luck