Hawaiian fish

[cwb_reeftank]

So I would have some time before I'd have to get a bigger tank and I know butterfly fish are known for not being reef safe but what kind could I put in an sps tank that are from Hawaii. So far the fish I figured is a small humu, potters wrasse, and potters angel.

 

[lion king]

So I would have some time before I'd have to get a bigger tank and I know butterfly fish are known for not being reef safe but what kind could I put in an sps tank that are from Hawaii. So far the fish I figured is a small humu, potters wrasse, and potters angel.

Now you throw another wrench in the mix, a humu is not to trusted with sps, Ive seen them snap them like twigs, really not a good candidate for any reef tank.

 

[cwb_reeftank]

Even if you keep them fed?

 

[lion king]

Even if you keep them fed?

I find that to be one of the funniest myths, nature is nature. I keep predators and am asked that all the time, no, you can feed them all day. What do you think a fish like a trigger that would swim miles and miles in the ocean, crunching up and moving rocks to find food is going to do in a glass cage. It's not about eating, it's about destruction, I've seen people lose $thousands when triggers all of sudden became trendy in reef tanks around here. I laughed and laughed. Depending a persons risk vs reward tolerance, some have been happy keeping them, usually is rather large tanks.

 

[cwb_reeftank]

well it seems like I'm having a hard time coming up with a list of Hawaiian fish that is good for a reef tank because I know there is a lot of tangs and butterfly fish there and I don't know what would be good for a sps tank the only two I know for sure is the potters angel and wrasse.

 

[pcon]

Roaops are generally reef safe ish for butterflies. Could do a tinkers

 

[scchase]

For an SPS tank I would consider the following Hawaiin Butterflys safe:
Yellow longnose
Big Longnose Butterfly
Tinkers Butterfly
Lemon Butterfly (riskiest of the bunch but a plankton eater in general)
Schooling Bannerfish
Pyramid Butterfly
Thompsons Butterfly (Never seen these in the hobby)

 

[cwb_reeftank]

Well it looks like i have the butterfly's picked out that i want that can be kept with sps but what about tangs? Also does anyone know if there are any Anthias in Hawaii or any small fish too?

 

[saltyhog]

I recall seeing some anthias when diving in Hawaii but couldn't tell you what species or if they are available in the trade. Flame wrasse are stunning and are endemic to Hawaii I believe.

The only Hawaiian tang that would be appropriate in a 75 gallon would be Kole or yellow tangs. They are reef safe. The larger Naso, orange shoulder, achilles and gold rim tangs need much bigger tanks....especially the first three. I have a Gold Rim in my 72x24 tank and he is a model citizen.

 

[cwb_reeftank]

I wonder what they were and I think they would look nice and are purple tangs from there or are they somewhere else?

 

[scchase]

Four Anthias in Hawaii though 2 are extremely expensive, Bicolor, Hawaiian Longfin, Thompsons and Hawaiian Yellow. Last three are extremely rare in the hobby.

 

[mattzang]

bicolor anthias are from hawaii i think

 

[scchase]

I would also add Convict tangs in the small group though I am divided on any tang in a 75g, they stay the same size as Koles and Yellow are less aggressive than either

 

[mattzang]

halichoeres ornatassimus is a hawaii also, but not sure i'd advise keeping that one with other wrasses

do you already have the 75 or is that what you're getting? if you're wanting to do triggers, tangs, and butterflies you might want to get a bigger tank

 

[cwb_reeftank]

So I have tangs, butterfly, angel, one wrasse, and one anthias for options. I already have the 75 but I do not have it up right now. I'm waiting till after December to set it up but I guess if there is a bigger tank for the right price I might get it (125-180). But I am probably going to stick with the 75 for right now.

 

[scchase]

Didn't see the size, with the 75g you are severely limited, 125 will give you a lot more options

 

[cwb_reeftank]

I know its probably counterproductive but I will probably be able to upgrade to a 125 after about a year from the time I set the 75 up. Reason being finishing grad school and getting a job set up and some student debt paid off. Trying to get a fish list and figuring prices and seeing what i can get and what will have to wait.

 

[suta4242]

You mentioned SPS, do you mind some polyp retraction?

 

[Ab Kouign Amann]

I'm no expert but we talked a lot about small tank with hobbyist at our lfs :

Choose fishes that are not "swimmers". Therefore avoid big wrasses, pelagic or big triggers and Acanthurus tangs.

Instead, opt for fish that are more reef associated such as Zebrasoma tangs (still a bit big for less than 100g), small wrasses or small tetraodonts (the family with puffers, triggers).

Avoid fish that are aggressive or predatory toward inhabitants of the same small tanks. The stress will be constant. For instance potter angels can nip at corals. Angelfish in general tend to be coral nippers. Some people are lucky, some are less.
Angelfish are rock grazer so they eat pretty much anything palatable growing on them : small inverts, polyps, tunicates (sea squirts), sponges, algae, etc. Some angels are less nippy than other : C. loricula (flame angelfish), despite looking less 'endemic' and being quite common in reeftanks but more people have good track records with them. Plus they are less expensive. However people reported reef compatibility with their Centropyges potteri and loricula, so try if you are feeling lucky.

Some suggestions : if you can put your hand on a Cirripectes blenny, Cirripectes vanderbilti is endemic to Hawaii and has ton of personality. Unfortunately very few wholeseller have them, and I have yet to see it at a LFS. You can substitute it with an Ember blenny (Cirripectes stigmaticus) which is much more common.
Blennies are fun, will eat algae, and don't take up too much precious swimming space for the rest of the fishes.

If you really want an agressive Tetraodont you can also go for a Canthigaster jactator. They swim much less than a medium sized trigger, are less aggressive toward other fishes. Also they are quite endemic to hawaii and have a lot of personality. They are still invertebrate killing machine.

Then you have the classic small fishes such as fire Dartfishes (Nemateleotris magnifica).

I'm not competent for the butterflyfish part however.

 

[cwb_reeftank]

I think I'm going to try my luck with the potters Angel (only because my churb pygmy angel has done fine but i know each fish is different) and the Canthigaster jactator. I do not really keep any shrimp or anything like that and if they eat a few crabs or snails I'm ok with that. So with the Potter Angel, Canthigaster jactator, yellow tang, Ember blenny , Bicolor anthias, and some butterflys and maybe some wrasse?