Have you kept Anthias Long Term?

[d2mini]

I'm curious who has had long term success with Anthias. I've tried once or twice in my time and I wouldn't quite call it successful.
For the sake of argument, let's define "long term success" as a year or more.
Please vote above, but if you've had long term success, please comment below and tell us about your experience and which variation you had/have. And any thoughts on why you think you've been successful keeping Anthias.

 

[CC13]

I had 5 Bartlett's.

By far some of the most beautiful and active fish. They all ate like crazy when feeding time came around.

They went from being out and about all day to one at a time hiding, not eating and then dying. They all ended up dying.

I don't have any other fish that would bother them, and they all seemed to get a long. Not sure why they didn't make it, maybe they were caught with cyanide? Not even the largest made it. they all lived for around 3-4 months with no issues, and then within 2 weeks all were dead.

 

[madweazl]

I had a pair of Lyretails and lost them both. The female ended up with an abrasion, healed up, then the mail got one, and died soon after. The female remained in good shape until getting popeye and another abrasion. This too, healed up and she looked great until dying about a month or two later. I'm not sure who/what was causing the abrasions or what part they played in the ultimate demise (infection perhaps). They werent skinny but perhaps they needed more food still (LRS fed three times daily and they gobbled it up). I saw the coral beauty chase them a few times but never noticed appreciable bullying. I'm planning on trying some ignitus in the 150g.

 

[Swoody]

I can only comment on my Blotchy which has done exceedingly well given that he went through internal parasite and pop eye while in qt. He is def. one of my favorites but did give me a scare when I switched tanks in April....He obviously did not like being chased and caught and took a few days to regain his activity....took me awhile to find him as he found a perfect little hiding hole on the bottom under a rock ledge where he chilled for a few days...but he is fine as can be and uses every inch of his 255g home. Had him for a bit over a year now...

 

[ca1ore]

I have certainly had more than my fair share of anthias die in QT, but once I get them into the display they are generally enduring. 5 years seems to be about the maximum though. Beyond that they seem to decline, lose body weight and die.

 

[Mortie31]

I’ve had a shoal of lyretail anthias for 6 1/2yrs now, I have lost a couple over the years down to 5 now from 8 I was just thinking about adding in another 3

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

I have on left currently. I'll leave it at that!

 

[Tallison]

I recently purchased a female Lyretail from LA and so far so good. The first day in QT she hung out at the bottom corner and refused to eat, took the risk and moved her to my DT, shes been eating like a pig since.

 

[smartwater101]

3 Waitei Anthias. At first they only came out a few hours a day.

1 is now out and about all day. The other 2 never come out of hiding even at feeding time. In fact I'm not even sure they're still alive.

At least the 1 seems fat and happy

 

[Elgringodiablo]

I've kept a pair in a 50 gallon system for over a year and they are doing great. I've also got a pair in a 100 gallon system who seem good after a few months. That said, I have lost probably half a dozen in quarantine, prior to adding to a display and believe I had one infect my 100g before I knew how to quarantine.

 

[seldon]

I had a male and two female lyretail anthias for about a year and a half. I went on vacation last month and came home to both females missing along with my make Lubbocks wrasse. A week later I found the make dead on the bottom of the tank. So while more than your year criteria, I wouldn't say great.

 

[leahfiish]

Following!

 

[Dr. Reef Verified Sponsor]

I started with 10 ignitus Anthias. I was down to 7 with 1 month of being in main tank (all 10 survive qt) over some more time i was down to 5 and it remained 5 for 2.5 yrs till I introduced ich to my tank wiping out entire tank.
Key to success was multiple small feedings throughout the day.
I had setup a doser and a wine chiller where i placed thawed out food like pods in. Fed that 5 times a day along with 2 to 3 normal manual feeding of mysis and brine.

 

[Sal Amadeo]

I bought 3 Anthias and only have one left

 

[DarthSimon]

I’m glad this thread was posted... So I have been able to keep most fish in my 12 years of reef keeping but never anthias. Have tried Lyretails and Bartlett and the longest I ever had an Anthia was maybe 4-5 months... They all ate well short term, then just disappeared never to be seen again. I feed twice a day and use Reef Frenzy... Plenty of small food particulates for the anthias.... What are we doing wrong?

 

[vetteguy53081]

one tank- 7 months. main tank 12+ months

 

[DarthSimon]

one tank- 7 months. main tank 12+ months

Bet ya an Apex AFS could help with anthias

 

[Adam G]

I have had 7 Bartlett’s for well over a year. I do 4-5 small feedings a day. I like to feed LRS, Mysis, Brine, and flake. In addition to these I occasionally grab some Angel Formula, fish eggs, and other treats to mix in. I think a varied diet, multiple daily feedings, tons of flow to keep them busy, and lots of hiding places all contribute to my success.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Bet ya an Apex AFS could help with anthias

Have a new one on the way. Yes, it will help with feeding schedule

 

[Ento-Reefer]

I have had 2 females and 1 male lyretail since February, and they are doing very well. They came through qt. fine. I feed a minimum of twice daily during the week and 3 times on weekends.