Schooling Fish Question

[vetteguy53081]

If properly prepped or quarantined, chromis and anthias. Also firefish, coral catfish, for me tangs and even moorish idols and butterflies all depending on tank size

 

[Dburr1014]

I have 5 springeri damsels.
4 kinda shoal and one stays on the other side of the tank. My purple tang keeps the 4 together. They swim in the sps when the pt gets close.
Maybe I have 2 males? I can't tell them apart.

 

[Kasrift]

I have 5 springeri damsels.
4 kinda shoal and one stays on the other side of the tank. My purple tang keeps the 4 together. They swim in the sps when the pt gets close.
Maybe I have 2 males? I can't tell them apart.

I was thinking springeris, good to hear they shoal. You have 5 in what size tank?

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

I've heard that Zebra-barred Dartfish tend to do well in schools in our tanks (can't confirm this myself though).

 

[Dburr1014]

Kasrift​

7500 Club Member​

I have 5 springeri damsels.
4 kinda shoal and one stays on the other side of the tank. My purple tang keeps the 4 together. They swim in the sps when the pt gets close.
Maybe I have 2 males? I can't tell them apart.
Click to expand...

I was thinking springeris, good to hear they shoal. You have 5 in what size tank?

75 gallon

 

[RichReef]

Chalk Bass. Hands down. They swim together all the time. Always at the top of the water column which is another plus. They do not pick each other off although there is a pecking order. Never any biting. All the other fish leave them alone and they do not bother any other fish.

They like to jump so keep that in mind.

I happen to come across these at a fish store that I had to travel over 2 hours to get to for a Molly Miller Blenny. I observed them for a while then asked about them. They were not cheap. 40 bucks each and I bought all 4. 9 months later and they have been one of my favorite all time purchases.

Just not sure why they are not recognized as much as they should be.

 

[Nemo&Friends]

I bought green chromis also because I wanted a group of fish swimming together. Got 9, but one was killed by an aggressive damsel, and the other died a few weeks later. But I kept the 7 remaining ones for 5 years. I ended with 4 males and 3 females, and they are spawning very often.
I have tons of hiding place and they each have their own space. However, they are out most of the time. Very active fish, fun to watch.
They do tend to skirmish a lot, but if you have 6 or more it should be OK. I understand that if you get 6 or more, there are less chance of them picking at one in particular. They do have pecking order. I lost one about a month ago, so I am down to 6. I do recommend this fish as it is active, inexpensive, and when the blue lights are on they have a very pretty iridescence.

 

[Kasrift]

Chalk Bass. Hands down. They swim together all the time. Always at the top of the water column which is another plus. They do not pick each other off although there is a pecking order. Never any biting. All the other fish leave them alone and they do not bother any other fish.

They like to jump so keep that in mind.

I happen to come across these at a fish store that I had to travel over 2 hours to get to for a Molly Miller Blenny. I observed them for a while then asked about them. They were not cheap. 40 bucks each and I bought all 4. 9 months later and they have been one of my favorite all time purchases.

Just not sure why they are not recognized as much as they should be.

That's super interesting, I don't see them in tanks too often but I see them in the LFS.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Moomee]

I have 9 Firefish (common type) in my 210g and while they don't school, their shoaling-like behavior is awesome. They also tend to swim in the water column in the middle of my peninsula which is perfect.

 

[littlefoxx]

I've heard that Zebra-barred Dartfish tend to do well in schools in our tanks (can't confirm this myself though).

Yes! I can confirm this. I had one for a month then just added 4 more and all 5 are swimming together! Super cool

 

[El Toro]

Hi everyone, I'm finally on my way to a bigger tank and one thing I've always wanted was a proper school of fish.

Info:
I have a 200 gallon aquarium I ordered during black Friday and am looking for a school of fish. The stocking will be medium overall with two or three tangs as the only large fish.

My question is who has a good suggestion and do they school together or shoal?

Chromis seem to swim together, but people say they pick each other off over time and deal with uronema. Do they actually school and is there a perfect number? Also do green vs blue green make a difference, liveaquaria lists blue green as shoaling fish which I understand means they just swim together.

People mention evansi anthias or springeri as well.

I have 8 green Chromis in my 55g. They are super well suited to each other. It's a coin flip on good matches. I recommend when buying them ask the LFS when their shipment arrives and when they clear them for sale. Also ask them to snag just babies from the group. They will adapt better than odd sizes.

They may still fight and you may lose some, but they're cheap and a joy to watch. Just buy more.

 

[Kasrift]

Anyone try Seale's cardinal fish or yellow striped cardinal fish?

 

[NeedAReef]

That's super interesting, I don't see them in tanks too often but I see them in the LFS.

Thanks for the info.

chalk bass get sizable compared to chromis and damsels no?

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

chalk bass get sizable compared to chromis and damsels no?

No, chalk bass stay pretty small too (generally maxing out at 3").

 

[Doctorgori]

Hi everyone, I'm finally on my way to a bigger tank and one thing I've always wanted was a proper school of fish.

Info:
I have a 200 gallon aquarium I ordered during black Friday and am looking for a school of fish. The stocking will be medium overall with two or three tangs as the only large fish.

My question is who has a good suggestion and do they school together or shoal?

Chromis seem to swim together, but people say they pick each other off over time and deal with uronema. Do they actually school and is there a perfect number? Also do green vs blue green make a difference, liveaquaria lists blue green as shoaling fish which I understand means they just swim together.

People mention evansi anthias or springeri as well.

Yeah I got a trio of chalk bass, they. do hang together…

There is a blue Carribean Chromis (Chromis cyanea ) .
IME not nearly as prone to uronema and slightly less problematic but not foolproof …. I talked to a collector and he said the young ones tend to school whereas. the large one can be solitary
I’ve owned several of both the Pacific blue/green and the Carribean dark blue, I have the Carribean type currently

 

[lindaronstadt]

Absolutely, it's great to hear that you're considering such a diverse range of fish for your tank! Chromis and anthias can coexist well if properly prepped or quarantined.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Anyone try Seale's cardinal fish or yellow striped cardinal fish?

I know some people have tried small groups of Seale's, and they reported shoal well, but I'm not sure how well they do long-term in groups. The quote (and other info) below shows/discusses some species of cardinals that I've heard can work in groups at least to some degree (reportedly long-term shoals work out, but I can't verify that):

There are many options with plenty of different colors to choose from in smaller cardinals that typically exhibit more movement than Bangaii carinals.

The ones listed below tend to be more active swimmers, though they are typically naturally nocturnal and take time to get used to tank schedule to be active or feed during the day.

For instance:
Red Stop Light Cardinalfish (Apogonichthys hyalinus)

Yellowstriped Cardinalfish (Ostorhincus cyanosoma)

Ochrestriped Cardinalfish (Ostorhincus compressus)

Seal's Cardinalfish (Ostorhincus sealei)

Alternatively, you could do the ring-tailed cardinalfish (Ostorhinchus aureus). They’re nocturnal and more of a coppery color than vibrant yellow, but they’re cool little fish, and I’ve heard that they should school/shoal pretty well (full disclosure: I have no idea how they’d do long term in a group - they might eventually kill each other like a lot of other cardinals do, or they might be fine).

There's also the Longspine/Threadfin Cardinal, Zoramia leptacanthus, which I have repeatedly heard does well long term in schools/shoals.

 

[Kasrift]

I know some people have tried small groups of Seale's, and they reported shoal well, but I'm not sure how well they do long-term in groups. The quote (and other info) below shows/discusses some species of cardinals that I've heard can work in groups at least to some degree (reportedly long-term shoals work out, but I can't verify that):


There's also the Longspine/Threadfin Cardinal, Zoramia leptacanthus, which I have repeatedly heard does well long term in schools/shoals.

I've read Threadfin do well in groups long term too, just that they aren't good shippers and to be honest aren't that interesting to look at. I'm leaning towards Seale or Yellow Striped Cardinals.

 

[Kasrift]

Absolutely, it's great to hear that you're considering such a diverse range of fish for your tank! Chromis and anthias can coexist well if properly prepped or quarantined.

Lots of planning for the stocking. I'm going from a 32 gallon to the IM 200 EXT peninsula. I ordered it on black friday sales and it said 4-6 months wait time, but I got it in a week. It's in the garage now.

I'm thinking of trying two different schools/shoals of fish. I'm leaning towards as mentioned Seale or Yellow Striped Cardinal Fish and maybe 9 of those for a school and 5 Evansi Anthias as the other main school. I kind of wonder if two groups will keep each other grouped up.

 

[Cantusaurus]

I don’t know if this was already suggested, but dartfish are your best bet as far as hardiness and care for reef safe peaceful shoaling fish that won’t kill each other.
Zebra, blue gudgeon, and scissor tail are all good options. The zebra ones look much better when they get larger. But they are all very underrated and you can get as many as you want. You could even get multiple types if you want