reeffirstaid
Active Member
The reef keeping hobby has grown by leaps and bounds. Many common reef residents today, such as SPS coral, various sessile invertebrates, gorgonians and many others, were considered impossible to keep in home aquariums, just 20 years ago. Much of that progress was pushed along, as hobbyists at home, experimented with different ways to achieve ideal water quality, while replicating the powerful natural light of the sun. As science learned more about coral reefs, this information was passed into the hobby, providing essential insight into what makes coral healthy, and the various environments marine fish need to survive. With so much technology, and so much progress, we still haven’t figured out how to keep certain corals together, with certain fish, and not watch our precious polyps wither away, at the jaws of a hungry fish. If your favorite marine fish is a large or dwarf marine angelfish, butterflyfish, even a filefish, is it possible to keep them in an aquarium, also displaying some beautiful corals, that might be on the fish’s menu?
While the jaws of this french angelfish don't look menacing, for a coral polyp, they may certainly be the last thing it sees
Known coral pillagers:
Large and dwarf marine angels are known coral feeders. Large polyp stony corals, and even some small polyp stony corals, are often favored menu items, for either species. Zoo polyps make for a light snack, and even snails and hermit crabs are sometimes sampled. Yet we see marine aquariums containing coral and large and dwarf angelfish. All fish are individuals, and literally, the same species of angelfish in one aquarium, may not consume a coral that your specimen will. Learning what an individual fish likes, or dislikes, from a coral reef, can be a costly and frustrating experiment. To make matters worse, a fish’s appetite can change with age. That cute little queen angelfish may have been a perfect tenant as a juvenile, though now as it matures, your reef has become an open buffet.
The orange spot filefish is an obligatory acropora feeder. While this isn’t truly the only thing they will eat, many who have been successful keeping and breeding this species, admit that they often keep live acropora in the tank, for the sole purpose of feeding the filefish. Other filefish, even those commonly used to control aiptasia, pick at corals ranging from LPS colonies on down to soft polyps.
Butterflyfish, with their long slender mouths, just look dangerous to coral, and they are, often consuming polyps, including SPS polyps who venture out into the water, leaving the safety of their calcium body.
All of these species look beautiful swimming in a coral reef aquarium, but often, the aquarium becomes void of coral life, as they slowly pick each beautiful piece to death.
While the orangespot filefish feeds on acropora, all filefish are known coral pickers
Is there a solution?
Over the years, I’ve kept so many species of marine fish, I honestly can’t remember all of them. One goal I have always pursued, is keeping known coral pickers in a tank with corals. The first method I tried, involving specifically large and dwarf marine angels, was constant feeding. In the morning I would feed a hefty mix of prepared and frozen foods, and throughout the day, an Ehiem auto-feeder would take care of feeding, every 45 minutes. This is a popular tactic when keeping anthais, as they are mid water plankton feeders, which are constantly feeding on small plankton. For large and dwarf angels though, it didn’t work, as several LPS species of coral ended up on the menu. Instead of plump, satisfied fish, I got satisfied fish, with coral as desert. Not to mention the hassle of doing extra water changes to keep up with the increased nutrient load, (we weren’t using zeovit, or bio-pellet reactors, in those days).
The problem with constant, or heavy feeding, as a remedy for coral picking, is that you are trying to over-ride a natural instinct. Angelfish, and butterflyfish, are grazers. They see something that looks yummy, they are naturally pre-programmed to sample it. I tried mixing my angelfish with SPS species only, mainly montipora and acropora, which worked, for a while. It seemed as though, after a few test nibbles, the fish realized there wasn’t enough meat on the corals, for them to bother with picking at them. All was well, until I introduced a copperbanded butterflyfish, to control an outbreak of aiptasia anemones.
With those tiny, incisor like jaws, the copperband could pluck away at SPS polyps, while making a meal out of my zooanthinid colonies as well.
Over the years I’ve tried egg-crate, coral only areas, which works, but is a major eyesore. I’ve tried acrylic panels, to protect corals from nipping fish, though I found it a constant hassle, as it seemed like usually the fish made a way into the coral zone, which meant I had to get a net, and free it back into the main area of the tank.
In short, from my experience, anytime you mix fish with corals, you are taking a risk, that the fish may try to eat their beautiful underwater companions.
Is a reef aquarium better installed as a system, with several parts making up a whole?
The trinity?
I gave the method of reef keeping I’ve settled for the name trinity. Mainly, because like the God of Judeo-Christian history, it exists in three. Instead of striving for one large, totally integrated tank, I took on a whole new approach. What if a reef tank, like a computer, existing of different components, tied in together, making a whole? One part of the trinity could display large species, like angelfish, groupers or even oddballs like scorpionfish or anglerfish, using the few corals they won’t harm as a backdrop. One part could be home to beautiful corals and invertebrates’, and a few beneficial fish such as blennies or clownfish with a tang or two for algae control. The last part of the trinity is the sump/refuge. Here you mix mechanical, biological filtration, with a small estuary to purify your aquarium’s water, and naturally remove nutrients.
What I like about this approach, is that it’s so versatile. If you are short on space, you could combine two thirty gallon tanks, creating a total system volume of 60 gallons plus your sump. Plenty of room, combine two 100 gallon tanks, or 200 gallon tanks, for that matter.
Also, I have found it’s much easier to take care of two aquariums, each set-up and designed with a purpose in mind, then it is to throw all kinds of animals into the system, hoping that it all works out. You can truly create ideal environments, minimizing stress of fish by keeping them with compatible species, and removing the risk of your fish, eating corals.
Cost?
Cost seems like a prohibitive factor to this approach. In reality, it really isn’t. For eye appeal reasons, and my own personal preference, I recommend two tanks of equal volume and measurement. That is the main cost prohibiting factor, as it’s often more expensive to buy two separate smaller tanks, rather than one large. Other than that, there really isn’t much difference. An oversized sump/refuge may be necessary, as you are using it to filter two separate aquariums. As for equipment though, you would need several circulation pumps, heaters, etc – even if you were keeping one large aquarium. A good, oversized protein skimmer can easily handle both tanks, and it’s likely this would be needed, even for one large aquarium. You could realistically link more than one aquarium together, turning your trinity into any configuration imaginable, though I have found once you get more than two aquariums on one system, things get a bit dicey, as far as water quality control goes.
While it often costs more to buy two smaller tanks, rather than one large, items like powerful protein skimmers are needed, even if you run one large reef aquarium
Final thoughts:
Think about how much money you could save, if your fish and corals had the right environment, and there was never a conflict between them. I could easily set-up a beautiful reef tank, with the money I’ve lost on corals which were consumed by fish. The approach of linking tanks together, makes it possible to have the best of both worlds, by providing each animal that appropriate habitat, and removing the risk of conflict.
Sumps today come in all shapes and sizes, allowing you to easily tie multiple aquariums together.
While the jaws of this french angelfish don't look menacing, for a coral polyp, they may certainly be the last thing it sees
Known coral pillagers:
Large and dwarf marine angels are known coral feeders. Large polyp stony corals, and even some small polyp stony corals, are often favored menu items, for either species. Zoo polyps make for a light snack, and even snails and hermit crabs are sometimes sampled. Yet we see marine aquariums containing coral and large and dwarf angelfish. All fish are individuals, and literally, the same species of angelfish in one aquarium, may not consume a coral that your specimen will. Learning what an individual fish likes, or dislikes, from a coral reef, can be a costly and frustrating experiment. To make matters worse, a fish’s appetite can change with age. That cute little queen angelfish may have been a perfect tenant as a juvenile, though now as it matures, your reef has become an open buffet.
The orange spot filefish is an obligatory acropora feeder. While this isn’t truly the only thing they will eat, many who have been successful keeping and breeding this species, admit that they often keep live acropora in the tank, for the sole purpose of feeding the filefish. Other filefish, even those commonly used to control aiptasia, pick at corals ranging from LPS colonies on down to soft polyps.
Butterflyfish, with their long slender mouths, just look dangerous to coral, and they are, often consuming polyps, including SPS polyps who venture out into the water, leaving the safety of their calcium body.
All of these species look beautiful swimming in a coral reef aquarium, but often, the aquarium becomes void of coral life, as they slowly pick each beautiful piece to death.
While the orangespot filefish feeds on acropora, all filefish are known coral pickers
Is there a solution?
Over the years, I’ve kept so many species of marine fish, I honestly can’t remember all of them. One goal I have always pursued, is keeping known coral pickers in a tank with corals. The first method I tried, involving specifically large and dwarf marine angels, was constant feeding. In the morning I would feed a hefty mix of prepared and frozen foods, and throughout the day, an Ehiem auto-feeder would take care of feeding, every 45 minutes. This is a popular tactic when keeping anthais, as they are mid water plankton feeders, which are constantly feeding on small plankton. For large and dwarf angels though, it didn’t work, as several LPS species of coral ended up on the menu. Instead of plump, satisfied fish, I got satisfied fish, with coral as desert. Not to mention the hassle of doing extra water changes to keep up with the increased nutrient load, (we weren’t using zeovit, or bio-pellet reactors, in those days).
The problem with constant, or heavy feeding, as a remedy for coral picking, is that you are trying to over-ride a natural instinct. Angelfish, and butterflyfish, are grazers. They see something that looks yummy, they are naturally pre-programmed to sample it. I tried mixing my angelfish with SPS species only, mainly montipora and acropora, which worked, for a while. It seemed as though, after a few test nibbles, the fish realized there wasn’t enough meat on the corals, for them to bother with picking at them. All was well, until I introduced a copperbanded butterflyfish, to control an outbreak of aiptasia anemones.
With those tiny, incisor like jaws, the copperband could pluck away at SPS polyps, while making a meal out of my zooanthinid colonies as well.
Over the years I’ve tried egg-crate, coral only areas, which works, but is a major eyesore. I’ve tried acrylic panels, to protect corals from nipping fish, though I found it a constant hassle, as it seemed like usually the fish made a way into the coral zone, which meant I had to get a net, and free it back into the main area of the tank.
In short, from my experience, anytime you mix fish with corals, you are taking a risk, that the fish may try to eat their beautiful underwater companions.
Is a reef aquarium better installed as a system, with several parts making up a whole?
The trinity?
I gave the method of reef keeping I’ve settled for the name trinity. Mainly, because like the God of Judeo-Christian history, it exists in three. Instead of striving for one large, totally integrated tank, I took on a whole new approach. What if a reef tank, like a computer, existing of different components, tied in together, making a whole? One part of the trinity could display large species, like angelfish, groupers or even oddballs like scorpionfish or anglerfish, using the few corals they won’t harm as a backdrop. One part could be home to beautiful corals and invertebrates’, and a few beneficial fish such as blennies or clownfish with a tang or two for algae control. The last part of the trinity is the sump/refuge. Here you mix mechanical, biological filtration, with a small estuary to purify your aquarium’s water, and naturally remove nutrients.
What I like about this approach, is that it’s so versatile. If you are short on space, you could combine two thirty gallon tanks, creating a total system volume of 60 gallons plus your sump. Plenty of room, combine two 100 gallon tanks, or 200 gallon tanks, for that matter.
Also, I have found it’s much easier to take care of two aquariums, each set-up and designed with a purpose in mind, then it is to throw all kinds of animals into the system, hoping that it all works out. You can truly create ideal environments, minimizing stress of fish by keeping them with compatible species, and removing the risk of your fish, eating corals.
Cost?
Cost seems like a prohibitive factor to this approach. In reality, it really isn’t. For eye appeal reasons, and my own personal preference, I recommend two tanks of equal volume and measurement. That is the main cost prohibiting factor, as it’s often more expensive to buy two separate smaller tanks, rather than one large. Other than that, there really isn’t much difference. An oversized sump/refuge may be necessary, as you are using it to filter two separate aquariums. As for equipment though, you would need several circulation pumps, heaters, etc – even if you were keeping one large aquarium. A good, oversized protein skimmer can easily handle both tanks, and it’s likely this would be needed, even for one large aquarium. You could realistically link more than one aquarium together, turning your trinity into any configuration imaginable, though I have found once you get more than two aquariums on one system, things get a bit dicey, as far as water quality control goes.
While it often costs more to buy two smaller tanks, rather than one large, items like powerful protein skimmers are needed, even if you run one large reef aquarium
Final thoughts:
Think about how much money you could save, if your fish and corals had the right environment, and there was never a conflict between them. I could easily set-up a beautiful reef tank, with the money I’ve lost on corals which were consumed by fish. The approach of linking tanks together, makes it possible to have the best of both worlds, by providing each animal that appropriate habitat, and removing the risk of conflict.
Sumps today come in all shapes and sizes, allowing you to easily tie multiple aquariums together.
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