60 Gallon FOWLR stock list

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childress5tyler

Guest
I've set up my 3rd saltwater tank and we decided to do a 60 FOWLR. Currently we have probably 35-40 lbs of live rock in my tank along with 2 damsels. Could I get by with these fish?
-Yellow tang
-snowflake eel
-clown trigger or humu trigger
-lunar wrasse
-longnose hawkfish
any input would be great! thanks
 
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childress5tyler

Guest
and maybe a pair of gold stripe maroon clownfish
 

mr. limpid

Active Member
The tang wont be happy in a 60gal tank and a clown trigger is one of the meanest fish alive (grows to 1'-8" in wild), hawk fish wont live long.
 
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childress5tyler

Guest
I already have the yellow tang and he seems to be happy, and what about a harlaquin tusk in place for the trigger?
 

mr. limpid

Active Member
One site says 125 one says 75 (tank size) it only grows to about 10". Maby others will chime in. It like to eat inverts, just somthing to keep in mind.
 

novahobbies

Well-Known Member
Hmmm, you're looking at a lot of fish that get very large and/or are messy eaters (often both.) I don't want to be a buzzkill, but I think you're going to have to seriously curb your list -- or buy a bigger tank, of course.
What are your new tanks dimensions? Is this a 3 foot or a 4 foot 60g?
Yellow Tang: OK, you've got him. Yellow tangs are considered to be one of the few tangs that can survive in smaller (less than 90 gallon) tanks. But be aware that he will probably be more aggressive doe to the smaller surroundings.....especially since he is already in the tank. He may have already staked out his territory, i.e., the whole tank.
Snowflake Eel: While this is definitely one of the smaller eels in the trade, it can still grow up to 2 feet long. Personally I don't think this animal should ever be housed in anything less than a 4 foot tank....and a 75g minimum, at that.
Clown Trigger: Just....no. Sorry. I feel your pain; I'd love to keep one too. But from all the aggression I've both heard of and even observed at my LFS, I think this is one animal that is either better off left to itself in a species only tank, or else housed in a very large 150g+ 6 foot tank.
Humu Trigger: Unfortunately, almost the same story. Although this one is less aggressive, it still needs a larger footprint than your 60g can probably provide. This is also one of those "messy eaters," which is of course also a nice way to say a "messy pooper."
Lunar Wrasse: Such a beautiful fish, isn't it? Here's another I would have on my list if I was building a FOWLR system. But again -- aggression is an issue, and these animals get close to a foot long. I've heard stories that these guys also grow fairly quickly, though I can't say from firsthand knowledge.
Longnose Hawkfish: Finally, a fish that fits the tank! At less than 6 inches for even the "big" specimens, and a slightly more peaceable nature, there is nothing wrong with this fish on the list.
Harlequin Tusk: See the line above about the Lunare. Almost verbatim. Although this might be a slightly better choice than the Humu (as per your original replacement suggestion), it's still going to outgrow your 60, and it would almost certainly
get all up in the Lunare's face if you tried to pair them in such a small tank.
Here are my suggestions. They're based on the assumption that you own a 60 gallon Perfecto style tank (48"x12"x24", or thereabouts), but these might change if you have one of the smaller non standard 60's. I get the feeling that you're looking for largish animals that are very bright in coloration, so consider this list:
Yellow Tang. You already have him, so keep him for now. Just watch for signs of aggression. Consider him to be one of two "show fish" for the tank.
Longnose Hawkfish: For all the usual reasons as mentioned above.
Yellow Candy Hogfish: They grow to about 6 inches, they are very brightly colored, and more to the point -- they're peaceful and not normally seen in the hobby. Definitely an interesting choice.
Bluehead OR Pinkface Wrasse: Either of these would be a good second "show fish." They are both relatively aggressive, and a 60g tank would be pushing their lower limit -- but not impossible to keep.
2 Blue Reef Chromis: These get surprisingly large (5 inches) and are great animals that are often out in the water column.
Black Sailfin Blenny or Lawnmower Blenny: You're going to have hair algae with this crew unless you're meticulous with water changes. One of these two animals will at least help keep in mowed down. I'm more a fan of the black sailfin blenny.....Lawnmowers have a habit of deciding for themselves if they choose to eat a HA crop. This is a small animal, but surprisingly personable.
So there you have it -- 7 fish in a 60g tank, and that's DEFINITELY pushing it. You would absolutely need to be diligent about your water changes, but I think these fish will be fairly peaceful together. I'd add the blue reef chromis first, then the black blenny, then the hawkfish, the hogfish, and finally whichever wrasse you liked better.
I wish I could justify cramming a sleeper goby in here to keep your sand bed clean, but I just can't in good conscience tell you to put *8* fish in a 60g tank. I think you're going to have to do some manual sand stirring in this bad boy!
 
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childress5tyler

Guest
Alright thanks for the input, we just started this 3rd tank to go along with our 90 reef tank and 20 breeder tank but i will take everything into consideration. thanks for your input :)
 

aquaknight

Active Member
Yea, I'd echo what Nova said, lots of good info there. Pretty would say that choosing to go a peaceful FOWLR route, is going to be better (and actually succesful), then going aggressive. As, well, a 60gal really isn't the best home for most aggressive fish.
Having owned both a Harlequin Tusk (3 actually) and a Lunare wrasse, there is no way I would recommended either for a 60gal. To be honest, a large adult Tusk is going to be the fish out of all of them with the largest tank requirement. Dare I say 8-foot tank minimum? The Lunare is a very close second. Mine uses up every bit of the 240gal, makes the Naso tang look slow. The energy level on these guys is nuts.
I really like Nova's suggestion list, save for the wrasses. No Thalassoma wrasse (same genus as the Lunare) should be in less then 6ft. I would recommend looking at a dwarf angel instead. A Half-Black, Eibli, or Lemonpeel would be a nice choice.
 
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