fish for a reef? (i'm sure you've been asked this before)

[The Reefer91]

i'm starting a 120g reef tank that will house soft corals and an anemone. i would like any comments you have about the fish i want to keep.
2 false percula clownfish
1 hippo or powder blue tang-i'm not sure about these ones because i've heard they can grow to 14inches(is this true?)
if not the hippo or powder blue tang than a yellow tang
1 flame or cherub angelfish
1 mandarin dragonet(once the tank has been established for at least a year)
1 lawnmower blenny

these are all i have so far. any suggestions would be nice

[blue_eyes53813]

they sound like a nice group of fish. Im glad you are doing your research on them before adding them.

[Dragon Wrasse]

How much live rock do you plan on having?? I have a 75 gal. with 100 lbs of live rock and a HOB refugium to provide pods for my Mandarin. Use cautiion when mixing corals and anemones....add the anemone way before the corals so that it can find a home in your tank and hopefully not move around on you.

[amee6730]

JMO:

The clowns are great.
The hippo and pb tank are prone to ick. Personally, I'd stay away from them.
Manderin...do you have a refug? If not, they will seek and destroy every single pod in the tank. For the long run, you either have to have a refugium or culture pods. There is the rare one that will eat frozen, but I've never seen it.
LM blenny I don't know about, somebody else will chime in.

[cheeks69]

2 false percula clownfish
1 hippo or powder blue tang-i'm not sure about these ones because i've heard they can grow to 14inches(is this true?)
if not the hippo or powder blue tang than a yellow tang
1 flame or cherub angelfish
1 mandarin dragonet(once the tank has been established for at least a year)
1 lawnmower blenny

1. Clownfish are great reef fish.
2. Hippo's and PBT's are very prone to Ick as mentioned and should be quarantined before adding to the display, they also can become very aggressive once established and should be the last additions to the tank.
3. Dwarf Angels are beautiful fish but will nip Corals in particular Zoanthids and Clam Mantles, they are also commonly collected using cyanide so make sure they are healthy and eating well and very active if you can have the LFS hold them for a couple of weeks.
4. Tank must be well established and have a minimum of a 100 lbs. of mature LR to maintain one Mandarin.
5. LMB's can be difficult to get to eat prepared foods so make sure you have well-established aquarium with large amounts of natural algae to feed on.

[Dragon Wrasse]

I agree with amee6730, I never had luck with my Hippo or Yellow Tang but my Scopas is doing great and has the best personality I have ever seen.....if you need or want a Tang I would recommend a Scopas.

[The Reefer91]

i know that hippo's are prone to ick, but i will quarentine them. i will have a 20-30 gallon refugium. space wise, i could have a PB or hippo tang right?

[cheeks69]

i could have a PB or hippo tang right?

Yes you have the room. If you do use the refugium as a QT make sure it's not tied in with the main system otherwise the parasites will also affect the display as well.

[Woodstock]

Ditto to above... Also, add the tangs last and simoutaneously if possible... they will get very territorial very quickly.

I like blennies and gobies Awesome personalities!

[Witfull]

i would stay away from the LMB, they usually wind up starving in tanks.

[Woodstock]

I've never had a lawnmower blennie but have heard that they require LOTS of algae. However, my bicolor blennie eats film algae and my homemade mush... He is a big with a super cool personality!

[Reelheel]

I've had much better luck with hippos than powder blues...I think yellows (in general) are easier than either of them though. I'm glad to see that you plan to quarantine...this will make your life a lot easier.
As for the angels, the flame is more prone to nip at corals; the cherub stays smaller and almost never nips corals...both can become a little aggressive but shouldn't be a problem in your tank.
Mandarins are beautiful but I'd be very cautious...sounds as though you know this already.
I'm a big fan of small fish...I always recommend royal grammas for almost any tank...I've had several canary fang blennies and they are great as well. If you want a fish that "perches" I'd recommend a small flame or longnose hawk. There are some precautions with hawks as well but I've had great luck with them.

[tommyp]

Yellows can be mean as well. I have a kole and he/she is really mellow.

I have had a "rhino?"(thats what the LFS called him he is basically a black) LMB for 3 years now. he eats anything you put in the tank. He also will leave bite marks on his tankmates. He had never done any serious damage to the fish though. If you find one that will readily take flake you are all set. Mine gets somewhat lean if there is no algae in the tank but right now though it looks like he is pregnant and on roids. He is and has been really healthy though through out the years.

[The Reefer91]

thanks for the help guys i do know that mandarins are tricky but i'm going to have a refugium and the tank will have been cycled for awhile. i'll go with the cherub angel. i'll add the hippo tang lastly. i originally wanted a yellow tang, but mostly because i didn't have the space for a hippo tang. i'll be sure to quarintine. the quarintine will be a 10g.

[Woodstock]

As for the QT, get a large prefilter sponge and keep it in your main tank for a few weeks PRIOR to setting up the 10 gal QT. This way you can place the sponge into the filter of the QT and have a great start on the nitrifying bacteria! ... Or you can keep the QT set up 24/7 with a fish in it to keep it cycled. I won't do the later because I would end up with another display tank LOL ~ I keep my QT stored in a closet until needed.