Long nose butterfly

[Justin poirier]

I’m about to buy a long nose butterfly. But. I was planning on buying a short spine also. To help with my detritus algae. Should I only get one or the other? Or should I a lot of cerith snails. Which of the 2 would be better.

 

[Maritimer]

The butterfly won't touch algae - they feed pretty heavily on worms, though they usually adapt fairly well to prepared aquarium foods. They do like to move, so prefer a 4' or better tank, and can be susceptible to bacterial infections.

Some urchins will go to town on algae, other urchins can be more carnivorous.

Cerith snails are straight workhorses. They'll scavenge some, slowly stir your sandbed, and at night they'll climb your glass and rocks in a film algae search-and-destroy mission.

~Bruce