Cycling Damsels???

[madd catt]

Ive used green chromis for cycling but i like those fish so they dont go back to the pet store. there not as wacky as other damsels anyhow.

 

[marine fanatic]

Actually my eel leaves them alone. I think it is due to a few reasons...
1. I keep the eel very well fed
2. Damsels are too fast for him
3. My tank is large enough to provide "territory" for all of them
I was worried at first about introducing a snowflake in my tank but a friend of mine who has had one for over a year now told me how to handle his potential appetite for live fish. Unless my eel is a rare example, I think the key to keeping snowflakes and small fish in the same tank is to keep your eel very well fed. Snowflakes are about as blind as a bat and unless he gets hungry, he never ventures out from the sandbed. I staggered my live rock to allow low areas for the eel and high areas for the fish. I have yet to see the eel swim upwards towards the upper layer of live rock.

 

[wamp]

I have no problems with ethier choice you make. If you do your cycle right, they will be fine. If you go the whole month with no water changes then you better go with the shrimp.

 

[iechy]

I agree with Wamp. I cycled my tank with two percs and two damsels all of which I plan to keep now unless they get out of hand. I did at first plan on returning the damsels but I've grown attached to them. One Beau Gregory damsel is always going in and out of caves in the rock and the other a neon velvet I think believes he is a perc too. He always swims around with the other two. They have been happy and healthy through the cycle. I checked my paramaters daily and never let it get out of hand while still letting it get high enough for the cycle.

 

[power]

I just used 5 puffers to cycle a new 75. They are the worst fish I have ever kept. They would eat themselves if given the oppertunity. I took them out and now I'm using dominos.

 

[jake22]

If you are planning on keeping the damsels i would go with the chromis they are not agrresive at all. Even with my sea horse who used to be in my main tank.

 

[aqua blue]

I used 3 Damsels to cycle my tank. I also used "Cycle" and "Stress-Zyme" to limit the peaks in Ammonia levels. Once the tank finished cycling (about 4 weeks) I added a Blue Cheek Sleeper Goby.
Has anyone had problems with Damsels picking on larger fish in their tanks? Just curious.