Blue tang and sailfin tang compatability

[Shilpan Patel]

Hey guys I have a 105 gallon (upgrading to a 300 gallon in a years time), and I have a sailfin tang. It’s about 4 inches.

I wanted one more tang, specifically a blue tang. I’m just doing some research about compatability and I hear because they’re different shapes that might help, also introducing at night, keeping them very well fed and possibly removing my sailfin tang and then adding it back in after a couple of days might help too.

My question is: the blue tangs available are small. About 1 inch. Will small tangs do better? Because the sailfin tang will see them as less of a threat and thus leave it alone? Or will the small size mean the blue tang will be killed very quickly by the sailfin?

My sailfin plays nice with my clowns chromis bullet goby and scooter blenny. It did show some bullying to the bullet goby for a few days upon addition of the goby, but that stopped.

 

[Tallison]

From personal experience I've never had a Tang pick on a juvenile of a different genus but each fish is different. I've housed 2 hippo Tangs together (1 adult and 1 juvenile) and never experienced a problem.

 

[saltyhog]

If your upgrade is happening that soon I would wait till then to increase your tang numbers.

1" with a 4" might not end well in a tank the size of yours. If you do it be prepared to intervene(remove one of them). Let's see what @4FordFamily thinks.

 

[ca1ore]

I assume by 'blue tang' you mean the hepatus/hippo? Carribean blue is yellow when small. Most new fish are going to get a bit of trouble, but I'd expect the Sailfin to not be too bad (mine never have been - Desjardini slightly worse). Trouble with really small hippo tangs is they aren't very robust.

Social acclimation box would be a good idea.

 

[Shilpan Patel]

Yes that’s the hippo I meant still 10 months away from the upgrade sadly.

Hmm I do has a Desjardini. What I’m hearing is maybe I should just leave it and stick with one tang...
I think it’ll be a bit of mission to catch and remove fish.

 

[eatbreakfast]

If you are getting an upgrade just wait to get the hippo so it can be added simultaneously or even before the sailfin tang.

 

[rainmaker]

I have a hippo and sailfin together in a 180 never has been a problem

 

[4FordFamily]

If your upgrade is happening that soon I would wait till then to increase your tang numbers.

1" with a 4" might not end well in a tank the size of yours. If you do it be prepared to intervene(remove one of them). Let's see what @4FordFamily thinks.

If you are getting an upgrade just wait to get the hippo so it can be added simultaneously or even before the sailfin tang.

I agree with these. Your tank is honestly too small for your resident Sailfin Tang, adding another tang to a lone tang is not likely to end well. Also, small hippos aren’t too hardy and when they do survive, they can grow 2-4 inches in a years time.

 

[Grsfish]

My blue hippo and sailfin get along good. They are about the same size though

 

[dblhelix]

I added a small 2" blue hippo exactly one week ago today. Purple sailfin didn't really like him and he stayed hin a corner at the top by the overflow the first day. Hippo slowly came out and was eating very well the next day and all week but stayed in a small area of the tank. The purple tang appeared to chase him if he wandered too far from home base. It looked like things were progressing however. Toady I couldn't find the Hippo and eventually located him under a rock this afternoon. When I got him out he was swimming upside down and in circles. I think he's finished. Put him in a small tank with an airstone to see what happens and he just lays on the bottom. Might be stress or disease (I doubt disease) but my gut tells me the big Purple Tang was the culprit. $125 bucks down the drain. Poor little fella.