Can I keep these 2 items?

robdog696

Member
I have a 58 gallon with 10 gallon sump and 5 gallon fuge. I only have 96w PCs. Current stocklist:
1 Mystery Wrasse
1 True Perc
1 BTA
1 Mandarin Dragonette
3 Mushroom corals
LFS just got a shipment including the largest Harlequin Tusk I've ever seen. He's at least 6". Also they have a very nice elegant coral. They told me it requires low lighting, but I don't think that's true. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!
 
you can keep all the fish but mandarin dragonette, because they need lots and lots of live rock.... and also they need a mature tank.
i would return the bta as soon as possible because it will die quickly because of your poor lighting. also your mushroom are at risk.
you may want to upgrade your lighting before you start adding any coral to your tank. it will be a good investment in the long run
 

mie

Active Member
For the bta, if i am not mistaken you should have around three in a half to 5 watts per gallon and the dragonette does need lots of live rock for pods
 

robdog696

Member
Ok, I hope this doesn't sound rude... but I didn't ask about my current stocklist. I asked if I could keep a very large Harlequin Tusk and an Elegant coral. Several people have successfully kept BTAs under PC lighting, myself included. I feed my mandarin pods, which I culture. In addition I have 60 lbs of lr, a 10 gallon sump with lr rubble, and a 5 gallon fuge with cheato. Also, something I hadn't thought about before now... because they are both wrasses will the tusk and the mystery wrasse square off?
 

mopar9012

Active Member
Not to be rude, but the people here just like to help, and it is possible to keep a BTA under PCs im sure. But with only 96 watts over a 55 it is highly unlikely. JMO
 

robdog696

Member
Nope, apparently people like to flame... because if you truly just wanted to help then you would only post on a subject if you could answer the question. Perhaps some people on this forum should learn to do more than just repeat what other members have written... all anyone knows how to say is mandarins need lots of rock, that coral needs more light, and what are your parameters. Ya know, forget I asked. There are some members on this board who are really nice and super helpful. But for those of you who would prefer to flame other peoples stocklist than even attempt to answer a question, maybe you should try something before you say it can't be done. I'll just wait until tomorrow, and call the owner of the other lfs in town. It's too bad everyone in the hobby can't be as sincere as him.
 

veni vidi vici

Active Member
I never have had an elegance but maybe this will help:
Description:
To the uninitiated, the Elegance coral looks a lot like an anemone. It has a cone-shaped base from which the large fleshy polyps and tentacles are extended during the day. The color is usually green or light brown with green high-lights and pink, yellow or blue tentacle tips. Elegance corals can grow fairly large and become the dominate specimen in a smaller tank.
Veron: Colonies are flabello-meandroid with straight edged septa forming wide V-shaped valleys. Valleys are evenly spaced and have sharp edged walls. Septa are widely spaced. There are no columellae. Polyps have large tubular tentacles extending from large fleshy oral discs. Forms satellite colonies (like the poritid Goniopora stokesi) in aquaria. Color is distinctive green with pink tentacle tips and a striped oral disc.
Natural Environment:
Veron: Occurs in protected, preferably turbid water.
Care:
Hardiness: Elegance coral is usually considered to be very hardy. There have been reports over the last 2 years or so that success with this coral is becoming less common and the reason why is not yet understood. Elegance will occasionally withdraw their tentacles and inflate their bodies into a contorted shape. This may be in an effort to expel waste products and should not be a cause for concern. If they remain like this for more than a couple of days, it may be a sign that they are not happy for some reason and you should investigate water conditions and verify that nothing is attacking the coral.
Lighting: Requires moderate to strong lighting.
Water Current: Elegance corals prefer low to moderate water flow. Optimum water flow is enough to lightly wave its tentacles. They will tolerate stronger water flows, but will expand less and the tentacles will become stubbier as shown in the picture to the right.
Temperature: Does well within a range of at least 75º to 84º F
Aggressiveness: High. The Elegance coral packs a fairly powerful sting and can expand greatly, so it is best to give it plenty of room to expand without coming into contact with other corals.
Feeding: Elegance coral is photosynthetic and requires no direct feeding, but an occasional feeding of shrimp or other meaty food up to once a week is appreciated.
Supplements: Maintaining correct calcium levels is important for skeletal development
Tank Positioning: Best positioning is normally in the bottom of the tank with the cone base embedded in the substrate as it is found in the wild. If tank lighting is low, it is acceptable to mount the coral up on the live rock closer to the lighting
 

veni vidi vici

Active Member
And some more info:
Harlequin Tusk
Sizes Medium/Around 4"-5"
Large/Around 5"-6"
X-Large/Around 6"-7"
Range in Nature Indo-West Pacific to Australia
Minimum Aquarium Size 55
Diet and Feeding Feed a varied diet of frozen prepared foods, minced fresh shrimp, and a good flake food. Try to feed at least twice a day.
Ease of Care(5=easy, 1=difficult) Suitability ratingSuitability ratingSuitability ratingSuitability rating
Reef Aquarium Compatibility Not recommended. Will not bother corals, but will eat crusteceans, invertebrtes, etc. Peaceful with most fish.
 
K

king_nothing_

Guest
Originally Posted by Robdog696
Nope, apparently people like to flame... because if you truly just wanted to help then you would only post on a subject if you could answer the question. Perhaps some people on this forum should learn to do more than just repeat what other members have written... all anyone knows how to say is mandarins need lots of rock, that coral needs more light, and what are your parameters. Ya know, forget I asked. There are some members on this board who are really nice and super helpful. But for those of you who would prefer to flame other peoples stocklist than even attempt to answer a question, maybe you should try something before you say it can't be done. I'll just wait until tomorrow, and call the owner of the other lfs in town. It's too bad everyone in the hobby can't be as sincere as him.
I know what you mean dude.....its like this on every forum for ANY type of animal. I'm real big into keepign herps (reptiles and amphibians) and I went on a herp forum to ask questions about my golden geckos, and I got perma-banned for telling some guy that a green anole doesnt need a 55 gallon aquarium. Appareantly he didnt want to hear that he wasted 200 bucks on somethign that could have been perfectly fine in an $8.95-10 gallon from wal mart. Its retarded how some people just hear somethign and repeat it back every chance they get without EVER trying it first. GRANTED, salt water fish stuff is far more complicated than anything else I've ever tried, but thats still even more reason to not just give cookie-cutter answers at the drop of a hat.
Your dragonet will probably be more than fine. I know I for one caught a whole bunch of blennys at the beach off of the rocks around a peir and I brought them back to put in my roommates tank with his mantis shrimp, I looked online and it said "only eats copepods, expected live in captivity is 2 months"....well I threw some of those shrimp pellets I use to feed my turtles, and what do ya know....the blenys eat them like crazy and theyre still alive and thriving 6 months later.
in summation....im glad someone called those posters out. you rock.
 

petjunkie

Active Member
Do you just have one 96 pc or is there several? Either way I would say no to the elegance, most that come in these days die. The Australian ones fare better but I would say not nearly enough light, 58 gallons are rather deep and t5 or halides would be preferred. The tusk I think will get too large if yours is a three foot tank and may become a terror in close spaces, especially with your other wrasse. Also in the future don't ask for advice if you aren't going to listen, people care about the animals in your tank and don't want them to die, for instance almost 90% of anemones in captivity are dead within five years, not exactly what I call success.
 

veni vidi vici

Active Member
Originally Posted by petjunkie
Do you just have one 96 pc or is there several? Either way I would say no to the elegance, most that come in these days die. The Australian ones fare better but I would say not nearly enough light, 58 gallons are rather deep and t5 or halides would be preferred. The tusk I think will get too large if yours is a three foot tank and may become a terror in close spaces, especially with your other wrasse. Also in the future don't ask for advice if you aren't going to listen, people care about the animals in your tank and don't want them to die, for instance almost 90% of anemones in captivity are dead within five years, not exactly what I call success.
Its just to hard to separate fact from opinions on these forum's.I choose to do my own research in addition to asking alot of questions.Alot of people do repeat things that they hear without any first hand experience. And that is JMHO
)
 
sorry i'm not here to flame at you i just want your tank to be a success! good luck with everything hope your not mad
p.s i'm pretty good at keeping my corals happy but i had a elegance coral and thats the only one to this day (coral wise) that has passed on me. this is one coral that your water needs to be perfect!!! i had it about 5-6 months than it was all down hill from there i hope you have better luck than me
 
mostly people are just here to help there is no need for you to blow up on me, i'm just stating my advice on what will help you. so i really could careless what you really do or have since you have disrespected me.
 

b bauer

Member
Originally Posted by Robdog696
I have a 58 gallon with 10 gallon sump and 5 gallon fuge. I only have 96w PCs. Current stocklist:
1 Mystery Wrasse
1 True Perc
1 BTA
1 Mandarin Dragonette
3 Mushroom corals
LFS just got a shipment including the largest Harlequin Tusk I've ever seen. He's at least 6". Also they have a very nice elegant coral. They told me it requires low lighting, but I don't think that's true. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!
you asked for any advice and they gave some to you about your bta no flaming just advice.I to am not specific on on my ?
 

michaeltx

Moderator
I havent really read anything rude but please take everything with a grain of salt.
Here is my take on your current and what you are talking about adding.
If you are feeding pods great keep it up in a 58 ((which is what I have BTW) and a mandarin it can take out a pod population quickly just becareful with it and signs of it starving.
your BTA will probably live but really wont flourish I have had the same setup and a BTA and it lived but didnt grow and thrive till I bumped up the light on it.
as far as what you want to add I wouldnt do that if I was you for a few different reason
the elegence corals really dont have a survival rate anymore years ago they were great and live but from my understanding was harvested in the tide pools and higher up on the reeflines. Now they are harvested in lower waters which is why alot of people think they have a lower survival rate in the hobby today. true or not I dont know but really dont know of anyone that has great sucess keeping them. Hopefully that will change in the years to come.
as far as the tusk its going to be a messy eater for one. but will also go after any shrimp and crabs in the tank O yeah and it eats snails too. along with meaty foods that can foul the water quickly in a reef thats one thing we want to avoid and with a tusk thats going to be hard to do. Its also IMO a nail in the coffin for the BTA since the need as good as it can get water quailty to survive long term.
HTH
Mike
 

michaeltx

Moderator
I did forget to mention that I now have a breeding pair of mandarins in my tank even though I doubt anything will ever come out of them. its a 58 gallon with a 20 gallon sump/fuge combo. There are precautions that need to be taken and good selection and know how so I dont advise it for anyone and prefer a larger tank with more live rock for these wanderful fish.
mike
 
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