How Long Do Fish, Coral and Inverts Live?

Montanareefer · 01-11-2004, 09:39 AM

Hi All! Some food for thought!

How long do fish and inverts live?

I imagine metabolism, the size, temperature, etc would determine the live span of these critters.

How long would they normally live in the wild compared to our tanks? Any data out there to research?

Alot of times we buy fish or inverts and they don't live very long in our tanks and then we wonder why and it may have nothing to do with your tank but just the normal live span of the animal. Take a shrimp for instance. Alot of people like to buy the big ones but would it be better to go after a small one for more life span in out tanks and more bang for the buck?

How about corals?

I guess we need to narrow it down to colony, individual coral, etc.

I read on another board that colony corals can live forever and individuals will have a shorter life span. I am assuming LPS have a shorter life span but really don't know.

A lot to think about when we are impulse buying or really don't understand the life span of what we put in our tanks. I have been there and done that. Any ideas or data out there to really give us a better understanding of this!

nivek · 01-11-2004, 10:01 AM

yup definitely tagging along on this one.

Cosmic · 01-11-2004, 10:07 AM

I can't give specific figures, but it is known that many leather corals, for example, do not reach maturity until they are 3-5 years of age. because of this, I would assume the avg lifespan of those at least is a few years. There are notable coral heads that have been in existence for a few hundred years though. These are typically the massive "brain" corals.

I have personally seen a percula clownfish live for 12 years in my store's reeftank, being a donation from a former employee who had the fish for 4 years, with no idea on age when HE got it! This puts that clownfish at a minimum of 16 yrs old!!! I have to admit that it DID look like "grandpa" by the time it finally died. I can only imagine that some fish can possibly survive 20 or 30 years under proper conditions. Then again, there are some fish that will only live a year or two at most. Again, it really depends on species here.

-HTH-
Cos

JennM · 01-11-2004, 11:51 AM

I have a customer who had a blue tang for 25 years. Another customer has had her pair of percs for over 12 years.

If kept properly, creatures have the *potential* to live longer in captivity, than in the wild, because we protect them from the hazards they would encounter in the wild, especially as they get older (slower).

Of course, a power failure or other mishap can cut their lives short....

Jenn

Montanareefer · 01-11-2004, 12:08 PM

I think that it would be an interesting study to find out how long fish, corals and inverts live in our systems! If there is data out there showing life spans of fish, inverts and corals in the wild it would give us some kind of quide line on what we can expect when we purchase these subjects for our reef tank.

Maybe we could have a forum or archive where people can list the life span of a coral, fish or invert from the purchase date to the date it expired. I know this can be diffucult because there is so many factors that go into how long we can keep them alive and to get an accurate life span chart going but it would be interesting.

What do you guys think? Even if we could have some data on life span of corals, fish and inverts in the wild, at least we have a starting point to what to expect when we purchase a subject for our tank and what their longevity may be.

Why do I always come up with this stuff?

01-11-2004, 09:39 AM	#1 (permalink)
Montanareefer Has been struck by the ban stick Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 2,334 View Gallery Karma Komment	How Long Do Fish, Coral and Inverts Live? Hi All! Some food for thought! How long do fish and inverts live? I imagine metabolism, the size, temperature, etc would determine the live span of these critters. How long would they normally live in the wild compared to our tanks? Any data out there to research? Alot of times we buy fish or inverts and they don't live very long in our tanks and then we wonder why and it may have nothing to do with your tank but just the normal live span of the animal. Take a shrimp for instance. Alot of people like to buy the big ones but would it be better to go after a small one for more life span in out tanks and more bang for the buck? How about corals? I guess we need to narrow it down to colony, individual coral, etc. I read on another board that colony corals can live forever and individuals will have a shorter life span. I am assuming LPS have a shorter life span but really don't know. A lot to think about when we are impulse buying or really don't understand the life span of what we put in our tanks. I have been there and done that. Any ideas or data out there to really give us a better understanding of this!

01-11-2004, 10:01 AM	#2 (permalink)
nivek Cabbage Leather Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Penang, Malaysia Posts: 367 View Gallery Karma Komment	yup definitely tagging along on this one. __________________ "Hey Yoda! Stop playing with my orange lightsaber!" - Master Nivek

01-11-2004, 10:07 AM	#3 (permalink)
Cosmic Star Polyps Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: NE Ohio Posts: 173 View Gallery Karma Komment	I can't give specific figures, but it is known that many leather corals, for example, do not reach maturity until they are 3-5 years of age. because of this, I would assume the avg lifespan of those at least is a few years. There are notable coral heads that have been in existence for a few hundred years though. These are typically the massive "brain" corals. I have personally seen a percula clownfish live for 12 years in my store's reeftank, being a donation from a former employee who had the fish for 4 years, with no idea on age when HE got it! This puts that clownfish at a minimum of 16 yrs old!!! I have to admit that it DID look like "grandpa" by the time it finally died. I can only imagine that some fish can possibly survive 20 or 30 years under proper conditions. Then again, there are some fish that will only live a year or two at most. Again, it really depends on species here. -HTH- Cos __________________ ReefKeeping FAQ'S

01-11-2004, 11:51 AM	#4 (permalink)
JennM Bryozoan Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Canton, GA Posts: 49 View Gallery Karma Komment	I have a customer who had a blue tang for 25 years. Another customer has had her pair of percs for over 12 years. If kept properly, creatures have the potential to live longer in captivity, than in the wild, because we protect them from the hazards they would encounter in the wild, especially as they get older (slower). Of course, a power failure or other mishap can cut their lives short.... Jenn __________________ JennM Owner:Imagine Ocean

01-11-2004, 12:08 PM	#5 (permalink)
Montanareefer Has been struck by the ban stick Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 2,334 View Gallery Karma Komment	I think that it would be an interesting study to find out how long fish, corals and inverts live in our systems! If there is data out there showing life spans of fish, inverts and corals in the wild it would give us some kind of quide line on what we can expect when we purchase these subjects for our reef tank. Maybe we could have a forum or archive where people can list the life span of a coral, fish or invert from the purchase date to the date it expired. I know this can be diffucult because there is so many factors that go into how long we can keep them alive and to get an accurate life span chart going but it would be interesting. What do you guys think? Even if we could have some data on life span of corals, fish and inverts in the wild, at least we have a starting point to what to expect when we purchase a subject for our tank and what their longevity may be. Why do I always come up with this stuff?

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