Mixing Tangs

[coreddrgn]

Had a nice Naso Tang that passed away some time ago and replaced him with a Yellow (Hawaii) Tang. Was originally feeding him (in addition to other veggies) fresh caleurpa that grew in my sump which he ate voraciously. However the Yellow doesn't really eat much of it and now I've got a hefty growth of caleurpa that I need to harvest regularly.
Am considering adding another Naso or possibly a Sohal but have read that Tangs should be added simultaneously due to territorial behavior. Was thinking that adding different spp. of tangs may work better as they may not be so conspecific in shape.
Any thoughts on this?
Thanks!
Mike

 

[stacyt]

If your thinking about doing it in the 110 that you have listed I would advise against it. Of course with all fish they have different personalitys and it may or may not work.

 

[coreddrgn]

So you think that tangs introduced at different times (not simultaneously) will have territorial issues even if they're different species of tangs and not quite as similar in body shape and size?
Thanks...
Mike

 

[stacyt]

You can never tell with tangs. I have a whitecheek tang, that has really tore up my hippo. The whitecheek was removed for several weeks, the LR restacked, and when I reintroduced him, he immediatly went after both my yellow and hippo tangs. That was in my 240 gallon tank. The yellow, and hippo where added at seperate times, and get along fine.
In a 110 I would say stick with 1 tang, as there's just not that much room.

 

[coreddrgn]

Thanks Stacy...
Actually I have a very low fish load in my 110...and I did see just a hint of aggression between my copperband butterfly and the yellow tang for the first few weeks after they were introduced - but no problems now for ~8 months.
Also...have read that Sohal Tangs rarely grow beyond 7-8 inches in captivity. Anyone seeing Sohals larger than this in tanks?
Mike

 

[tony detroit]

My sohal is between 6 and 7inches and is a fussy eater. I keep six tangs in my 180. It will be a year in two months I've had all of them, some are more than a year and a half. The yellow tang is 3 years. Sohals, regals, powder blues, powder browns, achilles and nasos are all expert only fish. My sohal and naso only eat flake/pellet/nori seaweed sheets. They are not into frozen for some reason. Running a UV sterilizer helps immensely if your tank has not been qt'd. There must be a ridiculous amount of food for them to eat too. Feeding seaweed selects on a daily basis, and multiple frozed and dried foods soaked in garlic and vitamins fed multiple times daily. My fish get fed 5 times daily with a rondomatic fish feeder. You need to keep steady, stable water chemistry for them or you'll definitely lose them. Staying away from the same body shape in tangs will help you some but not totally. I keep a yellow, scopas, purple, regal, b. naso, and sohal in my 180. IMO tangs are the most beautiful reef fishes, but should all be in a 6foot tank as a minimum. I wish I had more room I'd have them in a bigger tank. I've seen a 8'' sohal at a store but it was brought in that size from the sea. If you already have tangs in your tank, what has worked for me in the past is
1.take out all tangs you have in the tank
2. put each in their own bucket with lid, make it dark
3.go to fish store and buy the other tang(s)you want, preferably the same size, but all with different body shapes
4.acclimate new fish
5.add smallest fish first and proceed toward largest
6.immediately turn off lights and leave tank until next day
7. you may even want to add them to the tank when it is dark for less stress