overcrowded?

[clownfish3]

I have a 55 gallon that is cycling at this point. I was wondering if I could put 3 heniochus butterflyfish, 2 b&w percula clownfish, & 1 kole tang into the tank w/o it being overcrowded. I have an Emperor biowheel filter, along with another large filter, and about 30 pounds of live rock. Thank you for your help.

 

[alison]

:happyfish Hi, and welcome to swf.com! Well, in my opinion and probably most on this site, YES way too much stuff. Most tangs need 120 gals really, not even 75, and definately not 55. Is this a reef or a fish only? Butterflys are not reef safe at all. Butterfly's of the same species don't do well together most of the time. Oh, and plan on the emperor filter braking down. I had 2 origionally that I threw away in a year. Canister filters are great if you don't have enough money or space for a sump. Good luck, and hope I didn't overwhelm ya. We all started there too, ali

 

[clownfish3]

It is a fish only aquarium. The butterflies I'm getting are one of the few that are a schooling fish. I read in many different places that yellow tangs and kole tangs are the few tangs that you could keep in a smaller aquarium (55 gallons). How many fish should I have?

 

[killafins]

butterflyfish get big don't they, so three in a fifty five is not the best of all ideas. Stick with an eel or an octopus, they'll do much better in a fifty five than the lot u chose.
Seriously, check out some of the smaller fish, stay away from tangs, the yello shouldn't be in anything under 75 but of course that all goes for matter of opinion.

 

[alison]

:happyfish Hi, I agree with killafins about butterfly fish. I would only reccomend getting 1 butterfly and the 2 clowns, and a damsel or small dwarf angel or a flame angel for the last fish. The butterfly fish should be the last fish added after at least 6 months after cycling, as they are a VERY delicate fish. Yes that type of butterfly fish is a schooling kind, but that would be WAY too much fish in your setup. As for tangs, they need more space than a lot of places mention. Now they are saying you need like 75 to 120 gal. minimum for tangs. Esspecially yelllow tangs for some reason. Good luck, and let us know if you need more help. That's what we're here for. -alison

 

[master 33]

Is your 55 4 feet long? If so the Kole tang should be ok. They are a much smaller species than most tangs. If it stays under 5 inches and your tank is 4 feet long you should be fine...same with the yellow tang, it just depends how big it is.
Stick with one butterfly and add the tang last. If you dont the tang will probably beat up on the butterfly. I have a thread going right now about other fish that work well in 40-55 gal tanks, look it up