same fish in one tank?

[hotwire284]

hey guys i have a question about having multiples of the same fish in one tank. the reason i ask is because on my way between classes today i stoped to watch the saltwater tank that we have in our union building. in the tank they have (2) flame angles and (2) yellow tangs along with (1) purple tang and a hippo. also they have (1) blueface angle and another large angle i am not sure about. i was under the impression that angles and tangs of the same size and shape didnt get along well. is this true or is it ok to have some of the same fish in there? now keep in mind that this a a big tank, i dont know how many gallons but it is about 12'Lx4'Wx3'H. im guessing they can do this because it is so big? (on a side note it is a very cool reef tank though! wish i could have one tat big.)

 

[jp0379]

JUST MY OPINION, but what fish don't get along with other fish rules are made to be broken. NONE of 'em are absolutes. My tank that I had YEARS ago, which was only a 55, had a few that were DEFINITELY not going to get along. I had an understanding with a VERY good LFS owner that if I get something and for whatever reason it "doesn't fit in", I can bring it back. I never had to bring anything back.
For example, most everyone says that as soon as your tank cycles, you should take out damsels (if you put them in so you could watch SOMETHING swim around....LOL). I have a domino damsel, a yellow damsel, and a zebra damsel in a tank with a banded shrimp, a redlipped blenny, a mandarin goby (MY FAVORITE!), a clown fish, and I even have a yellow seahorse. NOBODY has EVER fought. And I DON'T have a huge tank....they just all get along. I know most will say, "Well, you're lucky", but if you look around at your friends aquariums, as well as other LFS aquariums, you'll see lots of so-called "lucky" people.
Naturally, if you put a lionfish in a tank with a blue damsel, you can pretty much kiss the damsel goodbye, but other than extreme and obvious examples like that, don't ever say never.

 

[karajay]

For my .02 I think in general (there are exceptions) identical species aren't usually compatible. However, if that tank is actually that big, they can probably all stay out of each other's way. Fish are all individuals as stated above, even those that are supposed to play nice together will fight, especially if stressed.

 

[lesleybird]

You can only get away with something like two flame angels in a tank that is very very large! In a more regular size tank they fight over territories. Lesley

 

[jjetjock]

My French and Blue Angels get along just fine in my 125