tangs
- Thread starter hawkeye
- Start date
puff(er) daddy
Member
Mostly any animal adapts to his or her settings. My brother and I had American gators a year ago and mine was in my 125 gal tank and his was in I believe an 55 gal tank. His was bigger than mine at first and my gator almot caught up with his in about a month. So, the more space you give them to live the faster they grow. I think that applies with any species that is kept in captivity from fish to snakes.
Who agrees or disagrees?
Who agrees or disagrees?
jacksonpt
Active Member
I agree and disagree. Sure, most animals adapt to their environment, and for the most part, fish are no exception. The catch here is that most of us care enough about our fish that we want them to be beautiful and relaxing (for our benefit), but also happy. Sure, an american aligator may adapt to a 125g tank, but don't you think he would have been happier in something larger? Same idea. Sure, a powder blue may not get much bigger than a lot of tangs, but (from my experience), they are one of the most active tangs. They can also be on the aggressive side. So, to keep a happy tank, you're better off giving a powder blue a bigger tank so he has plenty of room to swim, but also so other fish can keep away should he so aggression.
That's my logic anyways... make sense?
[ September 24, 2001: Message edited by: jacksonpt ]
That's my logic anyways... make sense?
[ September 24, 2001: Message edited by: jacksonpt ]
jacksonpt
Active Member
Most tangs are active fish. But when I'm at my LFS, and I look at yellow/purple tangs compared to hippo/powder blues, the yellow/purple tangs are about as active as a rock compared to the hippos and powder blues.
Size is important when considering a fish, but there are other factors too. Look at a mandarin goby... about 3" long max, but most people consider a 55g to be the minimum for a mandarin. That is because of its dietary habits. You need a lot of LR to be able to support a mandarin (more LR than a typical 20g will hold). You also need to consider aggression. Take for example a small octopus, something that only gets to be the size of a baseball. Would you put that in 55g tank? Not if you wanted anything else in there with it. You'd probably need at least a 200g so the other critters could keep plenty of distance between themselves and the octo. Take for example a small shark, something that grows to around 3 feet. Sure, my 75g is plenty long enough for a 3' shark... but sharks need to be able to cruise the bottom, they need lots of swimming room. That's why it's common opinion not to even consider a shark for anything under 300 gallons.
See what I'm getting at? Sure, size is an issue, but you have to look at the fish's lifestyle to determine what size tank it should go in. Things like diet, aggression, size, and level of activity are all things you have to consider before buying a fish.
Size is important when considering a fish, but there are other factors too. Look at a mandarin goby... about 3" long max, but most people consider a 55g to be the minimum for a mandarin. That is because of its dietary habits. You need a lot of LR to be able to support a mandarin (more LR than a typical 20g will hold). You also need to consider aggression. Take for example a small octopus, something that only gets to be the size of a baseball. Would you put that in 55g tank? Not if you wanted anything else in there with it. You'd probably need at least a 200g so the other critters could keep plenty of distance between themselves and the octo. Take for example a small shark, something that grows to around 3 feet. Sure, my 75g is plenty long enough for a 3' shark... but sharks need to be able to cruise the bottom, they need lots of swimming room. That's why it's common opinion not to even consider a shark for anything under 300 gallons.
See what I'm getting at? Sure, size is an issue, but you have to look at the fish's lifestyle to determine what size tank it should go in. Things like diet, aggression, size, and level of activity are all things you have to consider before buying a fish.