Long term Rabbitfish owners, please share your experiences & photos!

[McPuff]

Several years ago I had a pair of rabbitfish... a gold spot and a two bar. Both were pretty small when I got them and put them in a 180 gal. I was AMAZED at the growth rate of both of these fish. They eat absolutely everything you throw at them and they must have superb conversion efficiency. Less than a year later, they were each about 10" long and would certainly have grown bigger. I rehomed them to someone with a larger tank. I did have issues with at least one of them eating the tentacles off a couple duncan colonies. Very strange. They may have picked at other corals too.

Have also had a few foxface. None of them ever picked at corals but they are shy for quite a while. My current one-spot has been with me for 9 years and is quite hefty. Regular nori feeding seemed to make him less shy and he comes around whenever I'm by the tank. The foxface grow considerably slower than the rabbits and do not get as big. For long-term success I'd always opt for the foxface personally. Mine have also done the "air chewing" which is kind of funny to watch.

 

[exprobratio]

I wish I got my magnificent at that size but instead I got him at 3 inch and he’s now 5 inch. I see yours doesn’t have the bright yellow fins either, I’ve tried to figure out what causes that but it’s not algae or diet related.

Ya I was actually a little surprised at his size! He’s huge! Got him from TSM Aquatics. He’s going to be a great addition to the tank.

 

[Sean Clark]

My next rabbitfish are probably going to be a pair of scribble rabbitfish. Siganus doliatus. If I can find some.
Generic stock image:

File:Siganus doliatus edit.jpg - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[Jubei2006]

Most 125’s are 72” x 18” x 21”, but I don’t know, I guess it would depend on the thickness of your tank and if you’re measuring internal or external. I measured mine by internal, external it’s a bit bigger since it’s pretty hefty acrylic (Envision built my tank, and James builds them for battle). I also have external overflow, so maybe that’s impacting what yours is rated/marketed as? I could definitely see telling somebody that a 72” x 18” footprint isn’t enough for a 12-13” fish, if it actually reached that max size possible. Could you actually have a 135 and just not realize it? Those are 72” x 24” x 18” if I recall correctly. I used to have one, killer tank, great footprint, I just wanted a little more depth because after overflow, the 135 wasn’t quite tall enough for my preferred rock scape. I like tabling and plating corals more than most branching ones, so I wanted something with a higher rock scape than is popular today.

I would strongly consider eating a rabbitfish if it got too big and I couldn’t find another home for it. They are food fish, after all. The puppy… eh, tacos would depend on how many pairs of shoes it destroyed. Nah, in all honesty, I don’t have an issue with picking up a rabbitfish, and then rehoming it to a buddy’s reef if it actually did outgrow the tank and flow. I’m not interested in them solely because of how they look, so much as for their utilitarian value during start up years. The main reason I’m looking at gold lined is their availability as captive bred fish, and their dietary range. I’m not set on it 100% though, hence the thread and inviting people to share their experience. So thank you, for sharing yours.

James builds some beautiful tanks! Got one myself. I have a Magnificent from TSM. Has grown about an inch in 6 months. Has been good so far. No issues, one of my favorite fish.

 

[BaghdadBean]

James builds some beautiful tanks! Got one myself. I have a Magnificent from TSM. Has grown about an inch in 6 months. Has been good so far. No issues, one of my favorite fish.

That’s really cool! I’m loving all these good stories about TSM too, I am always hesitant about online purchases without word of mouth supporting their claims.

 

[Jubei2006]

That’s really cool! I’m loving all these good stories about TSM too, I am always hesitant about online purchases without word of mouth supporting their claims.

TSM has been awesome to work with, Ive gotten 4 fish deliveries from them. All have arrived healthy and eating within minutes to hours of acclimation.

 

[jeffrey750750]

My orange spot rabbit is about a year old and is about 7". Super fast grower. Never eats any coral, hopefully doesn't ever take a liking to one of my four clams. My biggest complaint is he goes after my hand on occasion, he has some pretty good teeth. Scary

 

[BaghdadBean]

My orange spot rabbit is about a year old and is about 7". Super fast grower. Never eats any coral, hopefully doesn't ever take a liking to one of my four clams. My biggest complaint is he goes after my hand on occasion, he has some pretty good teeth. Scary

Your build thread is wonderful. Looks like you’ve got experience with big fish! I’m definitely feeling like my current build won’t be the final form of my future upgrades, but until I find a really nice 72” by 36” by 24”, it’ll do! Do you think you’ll ever upsize, or are you good with what you‘ve got?

 

[jeffrey750750]

Your build thread is wonderful. Looks like you’ve got experience with big fish! I’m definitely feeling like my current build won’t be the final form of my future upgrades, but until I find a really nice 72” by 36” by 24”, it’ll do! Do you think you’ll ever upsize, or are you good with what you‘ve got?

lol, that was supposed to be the upsize. Vlamingi came out of my 60 cube to the 180 that I had to set up for him. We'll see how it goes, lol and thank you

 

[Jesterrace]

Have you kept a Rabbitfish for longer than two years? What are your experiences with them? How do they play with others? Anybody have any Biota rabbitfish experience? I’m considering a Gold Lined Rabbitfish from Biota for my 72” x 24” x 19” custom tank, and I would love to hear folks’ opinions and experience, as well as see the photos of your fish!

Mine isn't Biota but I have had a One Spot for about 3.5 years and it has been a very hardy fish. It loves LRS Reef Frenzy, Seaweed/Nori and any random algae it can find. It won't eat the hair algae off my powerheads but if I knock it loose it will happily gobble it up. Also eats any Bubble algae that tries to grow in my DT.