Do fish prefer deeper aquariums?

Raul-7 · Nov 25, 2023

One thing when looking at Andrew Sandler's 17000G aquarium [9ft high] - the fish behave a lot more naturally then they do in much shallower aquariums. And IIRC, I read something about how breeding SW fish like Yellow Tangs, etc. requires a deeper aquaria than normal to illicit breeding behavior. Now this makes perfect sense since deeper aquariums would foster a sense of security and give fish plenty of space/time to hide. Shallower water would make the fish feed threatened since they can easily be seen by predators from above.

Has anyone found this to be true?

TokenReefer · Nov 25, 2023

Depends on the species I'd imagine. Some living in tidal pools even...

vetteguy53081 · Nov 25, 2023

Raul-7 said:
One thing when looking at Andrew Sandler's 17000G aquarium [9ft high] - the fish behave a lot more naturally then they do in much shallower aquariums. And IIRC, I read something about how breeding SW fish like Yellow Tangs, etc. requires a deeper aquaria than normal to illicit breeding behavior. Now this makes perfect sense since deeper aquariums would foster a sense of security and give fish plenty of space/time to hide. Shallower water would make the fish feed threatened since they can easily be seen by predators from above.

Has anyone found this to be true?

Will depend more on the habitat needs of the fish. Some do best with tank length while others do best with tank height Or Both

ISpeakForTheSeas · Nov 25, 2023

Considering that most fish are found at depths substantially lower than we could possibly provide with hobbyist aquariums, I'd say they probably would prefer deeper aquariums - but the max depth the average hobbyist can provide is probably ~36-40" max, so I don't know that it would really make a difference for most fish to be 3 feet deep rather than 2.

Raul-7 said:
And IIRC, I read something about how breeding SW fish like Yellow Tangs, etc. requires a deeper aquaria than normal to illicit breeding behavior. Now this makes perfect sense since deeper aquariums would foster a sense of security and give fish plenty of space/time to hide. Shallower water would make the fish feed threatened since they can easily be seen by predators from above.

To my understanding, this has less to do with safety and security and more to do with the fact that they ascend during their spawning dance - in some cases ascending ~30 feet:

ISpeakForTheSeas said:
The height of the tank is important for many species of fish too, and most tanks (including those massive breeding tanks) are too short to encourage breeding in certain species (not necessarily tangs, just fish in general, depending on their mating rituals). However, the tank's height being too short for a proper mating ritual between fish doesn't mean that the fish won't mate at all in the tank, it just means it's less likely. (If the tank isn't tall enough, the mating "dance" for the species that use more room will be noticeably altered/cut short, but I can't remember which specific fish I was reading about when I found the article that mentions this.)

TokenReefer · Nov 25, 2023

Sorry to steer this away from fish habitat, but mentioning Andrew Sandlers tank reminds me of what Craig Bingman had to say here about water column depth and affects on calcification

- skip to around the 53 minute mark

Bingman Bingman BINGMAN - Episode 49

Bingman Bingman BINGMAN - Episode 49 In this episode Dr. Craig Bingman is back to set the record straight. #VibrantAquariumCleaner #ReefBeef #CraigBingman Thank you to our sponsors: Biota Aquariums: https://www.thebiotagroup.com Saltwater Aquarium: https://www.SaltwaterAquarium.com?aff=20 The...

reefs.com

Raul-7 · Nov 25, 2023

Thanks for all the input! Really appreciate and it's very interesting.

Of course some live in tidal pools and shallower water, but I was referring to the larger fish most of us love like Angels, Butterfly's and Tangs.

You can skim through this video, but watch the fish in the background. They seem to swim through all levels without objection, except for those Kuhlia mugi.