Fish that should NOT be kept in your aquarium.

[DrHank]

Folks, I don't see cleaner wrasses. They are going to die due to starvation. The only question is how quickly. I'd also add the Rock Beauty Angel and probably the Bicolored Angel.

[tbittner]

Very interesting Matt! The LFS that I use is owned and run by a marine biologist so I DO trust him. His store is exclusively saltwater and he always has a pretty good selection of stock. I had also heard that the Powder Blue tang is pretty difficult but now I'm wondering...

[lcstorc]

Woodstock has a fat happy Achilles. She hasn't had it that long but if anybody can do it, she can.
I think cleaner wrasses are back at the beginning but if they aren't I agree they certainly should be.

[aquaman3680]

I had also heard that the Powder Blue tang is pretty difficult but now I'm wondering...

Its not that powder blues are difficult, they are extremely easy provided the right equipment. They have a very large tendency to get ich and so bad that it kills them. If you have a correctly sized UV sterilizer and a QT tank you can avoid this problem fairly easily.

Matt

[kimoy]

??

[brikeibur]

I saw somewhere in this post that someone had mentioned pygmy angels....I just got one because I was told they were perfectly reefsafe. He seems to be doing great right now, but I just wanted to inquire as to why they had been mentioned.
I'm not sure if they are several types of pygmy angels, but here is a pic of mine.

[lcstorc]

They are often mistakenly sold as reef safe. In most cases however when they mature they decide corals are yummy. I just removed my flameback because he had killed several hundred dollars of LPS before I was convinced it was him. As soon as he was removed the remaining corals that were live immediately improved.

[melfy]

Originally Posted by reiple

must have missed out on ....

all pipefish

very hard to keep.

I feel I must say something here.
Pipefish are not a beginner fish, but can be kept providing two things:
1-good water quality (well most fish need this one but pipefish are delicate). Also they do best in a tank with peaceful tankmates for they are, for most of them, shy creatures.

2- MOST IMPORTANT: pipefish, like mandarin, are hard to keep because of their diet. Many of them will not accept frozen food and will rely on pods, nothing else. So if you have a well established tank with plenty of pods and no competition for them, you can keep them quite easily. Remeber: pods are the key! No pods, no pipefish, unless they take frozen food. I don't have a skimmer in my tank because it will just kill the pods. Frequent water changes are easy, especially for a 20g.

I've been keeping a bluestriped pipefish for a year, and it feeds only on pods.
I have at least 20-25 pounds of LR and cheato algae. Pods seenm to like this kind of algae. They hide and they breed in those.
Pipefish are wonderful creatures.

[Elmo18]

Are we just listing fish or also inverts?

Best,
Ilham

[McTeague]

My son brought home a $30 Blue Starfish (Linckia laevigata) the other day, it died within a few days and according to my research on the internet they are very difficult to keep, very sensitive to water fluctuations, and cannot be exposed to air when being transferred from one container to another.

[GeeWizzItsMe]

Originally Posted by DrHank

Folks, I don't see cleaner wrasses. They are going to die due to starvation. The only question is how quickly. I'd also add the Rock Beauty Angel and probably the Bicolored Angel.

Interesting, why not a bicolor angelfish (I LOVE them)?

[reefjitsu]

Originally Posted by brikeibur

I saw somewhere in this post that someone had mentioned pygmy angels....I just got one because I was told they were perfectly reefsafe. He seems to be doing great right now, but I just wanted to inquire as to why they had been mentioned.
I'm not sure if they are several types of pygmy angels, but here is a pic of mine.

The cherub pygmy angels like yours are, in my opinion, your best bet for a reef safe angel. They do occasioanlly nip things, but usually do no harm. I have never had a problem with one.

[Kazzy]

Originally Posted by lcstorc

Scooter Blenneys seem to be a bit easier than most dragonets. I also have had one since the beginning of my reef and he is doing fabulous. From what I understand they are somewhat different or in a slightly different class. They can still be a challenge, but mine also eats prepared foods just fine and has grown and thrived in my system. Many people do however still consider them a difficult fish and there has to be a reason for that. I am guessing it is probably the difference between captive bred and wild caught, but that is just a guess.
Mandarins however, I have had a lot of trouble. I doubt I will ever try one again. I certainly will not until I have a well established fuge and probably not even then.

Scooter Dragonets are slightly less dependant on micro-organisms, though it often depends on where the fish was collected and sometimes just the individual fish. Some already scavenged on the reef, and others lived on just micro-organisms. Mandarins so rarely accept frozen foods that it is something that should be ignored, especially since frozen foods do not provide the correct nutrition needed in a mandarin's diet.

[tbittner]

The original post listed Ribbon Eels. I got a Ghost Eel as a hitchhiker and it's been in my tank for about 3 months now. This thing is literally as thin as a ribbon, but it swallows faily large silversides. It really fights and struggles with it but it gets it down. Funny thing is, the greedy thing will swim past small silversides to get the big silverside. It isn't afraid of anything either. I saw it chase off my Picasso so it could get a silverside.

[Kazzy]

Originally Posted by GeeWizzItsMe

Interesting, why not a bicolor angelfish (I LOVE them)?

I am not sure why they do not do well, but I know that their survival rates are dismal. I agree though, they are gorgeous. I was once tempted to buy one, until i read up on them.