fish list for a 55G

[browniebuck]

Could I get away with a small porcupine puffer, a humuhumu trigger, and a fuzzy dwarf lion in the same tank? I know that the porcupine puffer will get large over time...so if I need to scratch anything, I would assume it would be that (of course, it is my favorite of the three). First, would they get along?
Second, would that be too much bioload?
Third, how difficult would they be to care for (they would be for my classroom aquarium)?
If this won't work, what aggressive fish would be relatively easy to care for and relatively attractive to look at (while still not being nice...AKA eat feeder fish/inverts/critters)? We just inexplicably lost my brackish water fugu puffer (I have no idea why, but I am cleaning everything out of my tank to get it ready for future inhabitants). He was very entertaining to watch and also very fun to watch as he devoured his "friends" (rosies).

 

[nicetry]

I think the dwarf lion would be killed within a short time. Bot the puff and trigger would outgrow the tank in time, and puffs/triggers are often not a good mix either. In a 55, You could do the dwarf lion (not the hardiest of fish btw), a snowflake eel (very cool) and maybe an indigo hamlet or a large maroon clown.
Am I reading that you want the fish to eat feeders and inverts?

 

[browniebuck]

well, it is for a classroom. I had a fugu puffer that my students enjoyed watching eat feeder fish as well as snails, grasshoppers, crickets, worms, and ghost shrimp. In my building, we have three fish (now 2 ), all of which are HIGHLY aggressive (2 cichlids and the fugu). I have gotten into the "pretty" saltwater tanks at home and thought it may be fun to go aggressive at school. If I can't, I will probably either go with a cichlid of my own or bite the bullet and try to start a small reef at school ($$$$ concerns on this one).

 

[damon123]

I have all three of those fish in my tank but it is a 125 gal., they all get along well.

 

[garnet13aj]

A few feeder fish every once in a while isn't a problem, but in case you didn't know they aren't of any nutritional value so they shouldn't be fed as a saltwater fish's main diet. A 55 is a bit small for most aggressive fish, but I think the snowflake eel and maroon clown are nice suggestions and cool looking fish. I'm sure the eel would be fun to feed for a classroom, they have to be spot fed.

 

[browniebuck]

thanks for the replies. I have decided to either go with another brackish water puffer or with a MEAN cichlid. Having a saltwater tank at school would be too much work in the summer. Maybe when I become a principal I will give it a shot!