ok questions on tangs and a few others......

bpaul1201

Member
i keep hearing that tangs and rabbitfish have spines and are poisionous
? is any of this true and if so what tang would be the safest to keep without being hurt? also how potent are these poisons? thanks
 

michael r

Member
From what I've read, it seems that tangs are not poisonous, while rabbitfish/ badgerfish are.
Tangs have a scalpel-link spine at the base of their caudal fin that they erect when frightened or trying to defend themselves. These can inflict painful wounds into other fish, but most tangs will swim away rather than attack you.
Rabbitfish, however, have poisonous spines at the front of their dorsal fins that can bring some numbing pain wherever they puncture the skin. Again, as long as you keep your hands out of the aquarium as much as possible, you should not have to worry about being stung.
Hope that helped.
 

bpaul1201

Member
well that good to know, i was wondering but none of the online fish stores say anything about these things in depth! thanks again
 
Originally Posted by bpaul1201
well that good to know, i was wondering but none of the online fish stores say anything about these things in depth! thanks again
I have a rabbit fish and two tangs.
The tangs have these little white... sharp... little weapon looking things on their tail end that sticks out when they get pissed. They bang their little hips on the other fish to let em know who is boss. that's why they are called surgeon fish... they have little blades on their tails.
The rabbit fish have venomous spines that they stick up when pissed (or, in the case of my rabbitfish, he sticks his up when he sleeps... like pajamas). BUT my foxface is absolutely THE SWEETEST FISH I have in my tank. He is adorable and fun to watch.
Just my two cents ;)
 

leftyblite

Member
I have a foxface and a blue tang in my tank. The foxface is venomous but only shows his spines when spooked. The tang usually hides when I'm cleaning the tank. The foxface is very peacefull and even when my hand is near him he keeps his spines down.
 
Originally Posted by leftyblite
I have a foxface and a blue tang in my tank. The foxface is venomous but only shows his spines when spooked. The tang usually hides when I'm cleaning the tank. The foxface is very peacefull and even when my hand is near him he keeps his spines down.

Same here
 

leftyblite

Member
Foxfaces do grow fast. I got mine when it was about 2-3 inches about 7 months ago and now it is around 5-6inches.
 
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