Looking at getting a butterfly for my reef

badstorm48 · Mar 21, 2017

Everything so far has gone good with the new butterfly. I just finished feeding and he ate a little bit which I'm really happy about. I fed some blood worms mixed with mysis shrimp and a whole bunch of stuff. Its the formula one frozen food. I also put a couple drips of selcon in there. Good thing is that he went after the formula one mysis shrimp instead of the blood worms though he ate a couple of those. Theres only one thing that I'm worried about is that he favors the left side of the tank and just goes up and down it the whole time. Its the left side pannel. Now I don't know if he sees his reflection and is trying to swim with it or something. I have no clue. Everything in the water is good. Other fish are acting as usual. Everyone ate really well as usual. They are all little pigs will goble everything up. So, I'm just wondering why he is doing that. Seems he started it when the lights turned on. When they were off he was just cruising the tank and trying to find all the wholes and caves that he can go through. Lights will turn off in 20 minutes and itll be completely dark in the room and tank so I'm hoping he will calm down. He's breathing fast, but I think thats just because he is swimming fast up and down causing that. Only reason why I think he is healthy is because he stopped doing it to go eat and then once feeding was done he went back and did it again.

eatbreakfast · Mar 22, 2017

badstorm48 said:
Everything so far has gone good with the new butterfly. I just finished feeding and he ate a little bit which I'm really happy about. I fed some blood worms mixed with mysis shrimp and a whole bunch of stuff. Its the formula one frozen food. I also put a couple drips of selcon in there. Good thing is that he went after the formula one mysis shrimp instead of the blood worms though he ate a couple of those. Theres only one thing that I'm worried about is that he favors the left side of the tank and just goes up and down it the whole time. Its the left side pannel. Now I don't know if he sees his reflection and is trying to swim with it or something. I have no clue. Everything in the water is good. Other fish are acting as usual. Everyone ate really well as usual. They are all little pigs will goble everything up. So, I'm just wondering why he is doing that. Seems he started it when the lights turned on. When they were off he was just cruising the tank and trying to find all the wholes and caves that he can go through. Lights will turn off in 20 minutes and itll be completely dark in the room and tank so I'm hoping he will calm down. He's breathing fast, but I think thats just because he is swimming fast up and down causing that. Only reason why I think he is healthy is because he stopped doing it to go eat and then once feeding was done he went back and did it again.

For the first few days that kind of behavior is completely normal. It is getting familiar with the new borders to it's territory and is likely seeing it's reflection when the lights are on.

badstorm48 · Mar 22, 2017

Okay that's good to know. I was watching him this morning and he's swimming around more but still doing it. He'll swim up the glass now a couple times and then swim around the tank looking at the rocks and picking at them and then makes his way back over to the left side and repeats

james983 · Mar 24, 2017

My Tinker is a beast. He's constantly chased by my Hippo Tang but he is not intimidated at all. He eats anything I throw in the tank, even algae sheets. Good luck with your Declivis.

Big E · Mar 24, 2017

Hi Jim,

How is your Tinkers with the Sps? Do the polyps stay retracted?

james983 · Mar 24, 2017

Ed, he's fine with SPS but I wouldn't trust him with much else. He likes my Hollywood Stunner Chalice but that thing goes so fast it doesn't matter. I have other chalices that he doesn't touch so they are definitely selective in their tastes. By the way corals are all doing well.

Big E · Mar 25, 2017

Thanks for the info , you sure wouldn't want those OP polyps retracted

Glad to hear the corals are doing good.

badstorm48 · Mar 25, 2017

Declivis is doing great. He's eating absolutely everything I add food wise even flakes. I do have a stylophora that the polyps seem retracted but I don't see any damage done to it. Sps corals he doesn't touch. Lps it depends. I have a torch/frogspawn hybrid that I saw him pick at but it didn't seem to do any damage. I do have a gorgonian which I'll probably have to get rid of because he's doing some damage to that. Make sense though because at the depths that these guys are found at It's like nothing but gorgonians. Awesome fish and definitely worth it. I have 3 chalices that he doesn't touch I have an open brain that he doesn't touch and a plate coral he doesn't touch. I would say that these butterfly's are reef safe for the most part, but lps corals are more at risk.