Tank list...

[ninjafish]

I am just starting a 29g BC HQI. How does this stock list sound?
2 – Clowns
Yellow Watchman Goby
Purple Firefish
Catalina Goby
Blue Linckia Starfish
Fire Shrimp
10 - Astrea Snail
10 - Nassarius Snail
10 - Cerith Snail
Electric Blue Hermit Crab
What should I add or delete? Also, can I have a clam in there, or are they too difficult for a beginner? Thanks!

 

[saxman]

drop the Catalina goby (they're a temperate species and don't live long at tropical temps).
also, that tank will be too small and too new for a Linka sp. starfish, so i'd drop it as well.
as far as clams go, you'd be looking at 6 mos or more down the road...they don't do well in immature systems. also, unless you're running HQI or at least T-5's, you'll be limited to one of the lower-light species such as T. derasa, T. squamosa, T. gigas, or H. hippopus, all of which get pretty large eventually.
if you can find a nice one, you could probably get away with a gold T. maxima high in the rockwork.
also, until your tank matures and you get a feel for what it needs, go with half of your stocking plan for Cerith and Astrea, and 2 Nassarius (3 if you drop the hermit). if you stock too heavily at first, all they will do is starve back to what your tank will support.
be advised that hermits are opportunistic omnivores, and have a taste for snail meat (not just to steal their shells), and this is especially true in a new system where food is scarce.

 

[browniebuck]

your fish will pretty much fill your tank, but you selected mostly small fish...I would be careful with the watchman and the catalina as they are both gobies.
I would definitely eliminate the blue linckia as they generally have horrible survival rates in large aquariums, much less smaller systems.
I would also cut your snail numbers down a little and add about 8-10 hermits...just make sure that you buy empty shells as well, or your snails will become meals AND houses for your hermits. You could add a couple more shrimp to the tank (they are fun to watch) as long as you add them at about the same size (I added mine at the same time to avoid any problems).
Enjoy!

 

[ninjafish]

Thanks for the advice!
I'll scratch the catalina and the starfish. Does anyone have any recommendations on another starfish. I would really like a brightly colored starfish. Also, does anyone have a recommendation on a bright red fish that would work in place of the catalina?
Is there any reason that I need hermit crabs or can I just go without any?

 

[browniebuck]

From my experience, I have found that most of my snails don't spend much time on the LR in my tank, while the hermits love the nooks and crannies. You can absolutely go without any hermits, but I think that they are definitely a good thing to have. I was anti-hermit for a long time, but have realized that the benefits (volume of waste eaten, amount of space covered, hardiness, etc...) heavily outweigh the negatives (snail killings).
As far as brightly colored critters...they have a variety of different colored serpent starfish, perhaps a sixline wrasse (many hate theirs, mine has been fine), we have a half black dwarf angel in our 29 (this is borderline as it pertains to size in many people's opinion...but there are a lot of different colors in this group)...