how much is too much?

[jdog5578]

I have a 46 gallon bow front. while I want to have a few anenome's, I want mostly fish. I have 60 lbs. of LS and have about 20-25 lbs. of LR.
Currently I have 3 damsel's.
I would like to add;
psychadelic Mandarin
spotted Mandarin
percula clown w/ anenome
Flame angel
maybe a smaller hepatus tang
Is this going to be too much?

 

[chuckcac]

the mandarins are hard to keep in such a small environment (let alone 2 of them)
they feed almost solely on copepods.... i'm not sure you'd be able to produce enough copepods to keep them fed well... they'd most likely starve to death....
also, i'm pretty sure the tang need much more swimming room - they are big swimmers.... it may survive, but it wouldn't thrive
sorry.

the clown & flame angel sound great

have you thought about firefish or gobies? - they're peacefull, active fish... :thinking:

 

[sfoister]

Yes, that will be too much. 2 mandarins won't work, they will starve to death. Keeping one alive will be painful enough not to mention I do not believe they get along with eachother when kept in such close proximity. Also, a FEW anemone in a 46g is going to be asking a lot.
If you're intent on the mandarin. Get only one and only after your tank has been established for 6 months to a year as it will take this long to build your pods up to a level to sustain one of them. Scrap the tang, no tang should go in anything that small.
I would recommend however, not getting any mandarin. Get the flame, and don't get the tang.
The anemone and clown should be the last thing you add and only with correct filtration and lighting.

 

[jdog5578]

Originally Posted by sfoister
Yes, that will be too much. 2 mandarins won't work, they will starve to death. Keeping one alive will be painful enough not to mention I do not believe they get along with eachother when kept in such close proximity. Also, a FEW anemone in a 46g is going to be asking a lot.
If you're intent on the mandarin. Get only one and only after your tank has been established for 6 months to a year as it will take this long to build your pods up to a level to sustain one of them. Scrap the tang, no tang should go in anything that small.
I would recommend however, not getting any mandarin. Get the flame, and don't get the tang.
The anemone and clown should be the last thing you add and only with correct filtration and lighting.

understandable... So I will go with the one Mandarin, and add copepods if needed... I have the three yellowtails. Gonna add a Flame Angel, Someday get a clown and anenome. I still feel like I would want one bigger fish. Are their any bugger ones that are attractive and like a small home?

 

[sfoister]

Originally Posted by jdog5578
understandable... So I will go with the one Mandarin, and add copepods if needed... I have the three yellowtails. Gonna add a Flame Angel, Someday get a clown and anenome. I still feel like I would want one bigger fish. Are their any bugger ones that are attractive and like a small home?
A big fish in that size tank is going to look out of place and will never be comfortable. The flame angel is a decent sized dwarf angel and will look proportionate for your size tank. Trust me, big fish look really pretty and amazing when they are in the LFS's 200+ gallon tank but that same sized fish will look silly in something small.
A coral beauty would get slightly bigger than the flame, I may be mistaken. But either the flame or the cb would look good in that size tank.
If you want something big like tangs, triggers, full sized angels and butterflies you really need to go with 90 gallons and higher for it to be comfortable. A 90 gallon tank is 4 ft long and most bigger fish such as your triggers and angels would rather have 6 ft long tanks so even with a 90 you're at the bottom end of what is acceptable.
Keep in mind that it is rarely the actual gallons of the tank that determine what you can keep but more the dimensions. Big fish need more area. Small fish need less.

 

[jdog5578]

Originally Posted by sfoister
A big fish in that size tank is going to look out of place and will never be comfortable. The flame angel is a decent sized dwarf angel and will look proportionate for your size tank. Trust me, big fish look really pretty and amazing when they are in the LFS's 200+ gallon tank but that same sized fish will look silly in something small.
A coral beauty would get slightly bigger than the flame, I may be mistaken. But either the flame or the cb would look good in that size tank.
If you want something big like tangs, triggers, full sized angels and butterflies you really need to go with 90 gallons and higher for it to be comfortable. A 90 gallon tank is 4 ft long and most bigger fish such as your triggers and angels would rather have 6 ft long tanks so even with a 90 you're at the bottom end of what is acceptable.
Keep in mind that it is rarely the actual gallons of the tank that determine what you can keep but more the dimensions. Big fish need more area. Small fish need less.

I hear ya. I actually have a 90 gallon in my basement that has not been used for 5 years. I had a very personable 7" porcupine puffer in there, he moved with me 3 times over my college years and I had him for 5 years. After he died I lost all interest in the hobby. Then a couple months ago I entered a contest and winning the 46gal. bow tank and stand at my LFS and thats how I ended up back at this, learning all over....
So now I am all setup in my 46 gal. and wanna give this a go.
Would a Coral Beauty and a Flame angel get along?
I would be very happy with,
1 Coral Beauty
1 Flame Angel
1 anenome
1 Percula clown
3 damsels
1 Mandarin

 

[puffer32]

No mandrin, sorry. Tank is not big enough, and they need tons of LR and a fuge to breed pods in, sorry........

 

[belly up]

wat about a sixline wrasse?

 

[jdog5578]

Originally Posted by belly up
wat about a sixline wrasse?
that may be a better option. I do know peeps that have kept Mandarin's successfully in 30 gallon tanks. But I really dont wanna stress him out. I could supplement the copepods I guess.

 

[fish1031]

don't get a manderin! I got one in my 29g when I knew nothing and the lfs said it would work. Dead in 10 days.

 

[puffer32]

Originally Posted by fish1031
don't get a manderin! I got one in my 29g when I knew nothing and the lfs said it would work. Dead in 10 days.
EXACTLY

Its just not a good idea, you can never buy enough pods to keep a mandrin happy. Afew get lucky and can find one that eats prepared foods, but that is not very likely.

 

[reefchick15]

Originally Posted by jdog5578
I hear ya. I actually have a 90 gallon in my basement that has not been used for 5 years. I had a very personable 7" porcupine puffer in there, he moved with me 3 times over my college years and I had him for 5 years. After he died I lost all interest in the hobby. Then a couple months ago I entered a contest and winning the 46gal. bow tank and stand at my LFS and thats how I ended up back at this, learning all over....
So now I am all setup in my 46 gal. and wanna give this a go.
Would a Coral Beauty and a Flame angel get along?
I would be very happy with,
1 Coral Beauty
1 Flame Angel
1 anenome
1 Percula clown
3 damsels
1 Mandarin

you should never keep 2 angelfish in the same tank...sry. Both are very beautiful, i'm thinking of getting one myself(i haven't decided which yet).

 

[jdog5578]

Originally Posted by reefchick15
you should never keep 2 angelfish in the same tank...sry. Both are very beautiful, i'm thinking of getting one myself(i haven't decided which yet).

I went with the Flame Angel... They are ridiculously beautiful.
For the Mandarin, whenever I go to the LFS's I am gonna ask them to feed them. If I see one take flake food, Ill buy it. Otherwise no Mandarin here. Maybe a Watchmen Goby though.