what can i add with a purple tang....

puffer200

Member
180 gallon with 200lbs of rock. some xenia, hammer, mushrooms, and a mated pair of perculas. would any of the dwarf angles be ok. what about a naso tang or yellow tang??? blue throat trigger or niger?? i also have a few peppermint shrimp, cbs, and a few emerald crabs. thanks
 
N

nereef

Guest
triggers aren't a great idea with your corals or inverts. the blue throat will be less likely to eat the corals and inverts, but still not a good choice, imo. a dwarf angel will be fine. a naso tang will get too large, imo, for a 180. a yellow tang will be okay, but you will probably get some aggression from the purple.
 

renogaw

Active Member
either way, the purple may show some aggression with whatever animal you put in there since it already has it's territory set up and is a little more aggressive tang. definitely add anything at night after the lights are off. To truly avoid aggression, i learned a little trick.
depending on the size fish you add, go get one of those pool skimmer baskets (leave catchers) as big as you can find. attach it to the side of your tank, where the water flows through but not above it. keep the new additions in this basket for a week to get the existing fish used to having them in there.
and, last bit of advise, hopefully you QT anything you put in there, getting fish out of a 180 would be tough.
i'd bet you could get away with a lot of different fish because of the size of your tank. problem is the purple is not going to like them.
 

puffer200

Member
i didnt realize purples were aggressive towards fish other than tangs of similar body shape. will the dwarf angels munch on my coral??????
 

puffer32

Active Member
You could get an angel that nips at corals, its always a risk. I have had both a CB and a flame, neither nipped at any coral.
 

renogaw

Active Member
Originally Posted by puffer200
i didnt realize purples were aggressive towards fish other than tangs of similar body shape. will the dwarf angels munch on my coral??????

can be completely hit or miss, but every post i've seen, every lfs owner i've spoken to, say to add the purple tang last because it is such an aggressive fish to any newcomers.
 

rylan1

Active Member
Why would a naso be a problem? You could probably also do a larger angel depending on the species. IMO... People will give you all sorts of opinions, and different sites give you different minimum tank sizes as well. I would say do your research, look at other people's tanks that have a similar fish list as your wish list, and I would say a 20 gallon difference b/w a 200 and a 180 is not a huge difference.
I also believe your tank is large enough to diffuse much of the aggression. I'd say go for it and get what you want as far as tangs and angels go.... just keep in mind its probably not the best idea to get a similar shaped tang as the purple, and as far as angels, one that is less likely to nip.
A blue throat would be alright, except for the fact you have shrimp.
 

anthropo

Member
i had a purple tang and i got rid of it because of the aggression. every new fish i added it was a bully. didn't matter what kind or how big the fish. it could have been something not even close to being related and this fish would bully it. if you already have it i'd suggest taking it out until you have all the fish you want to add and then putting it back in or if you don't have it yet, wait until it's the last fish you want to add. i didn't bother reading what anybody else said.
 

bkvreef

Member
I have a sailfin tang and someone had told me that a purple tang would be fine to add. Is that true?
What about something like a group of cardinals?
 
A Purple and a Sailfin both belong to the same family-Zebrasoma.You have a higher chance of them fighting.I like to stick with one from different families.I have a Desjardini(zebrasoma) and a Powder Brown(Acanthurus),they are the best of friends,following each other around.It can be done,just more risky.
 

bkvreef

Member
Originally Posted by reeffreakgeek
A Purple and a Sailfin both belong to the same family-Zebrasoma.You have a higher chance of them fighting.I like to stick with one from different families.I have a Desjardini(zebrasoma) and a Powder Brown(Acanthurus),they are the best of friends,following each other around.It can be done,just more risky.
Thanks! I appreciate your explanation!!!
 
Your welcome...
I failed to mention if you do decide to add a sailfin and purple,add them at the same time or the sailfin first.The purple can really be aggressive.Better to get them about the same size or the sailfin slightly larger.
 

kjr_trig

Active Member
I think you would be ok with almost any Tang in a 180...Yes, the purple will be aggressive at first, possibly with any fish, but it will subside....IMO a Naso is fine in a 180 and would be a great choice.
 
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