My unfortunate experience with convict tangs: Video
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I hate when no one responds lol. Makes me feel like I'm alone with the certain issue I'm having. Hope your experience gets better with them and can be resolved. Good luck
robert
Valuable Member
I have never attempted a convict tang...but some tangs, the convict tang notably, have specialized symbiotic bacteria called "epulo" in their gut that they rely on to digest the algae in their diet. I wonder if the common quarantine practive of deworming might have stacked the odds against you.
Its not just the convict tangs but several species of tangs have these specialized bacterial symbionts...they are not all the same and are actually some very interesting bacteria...one of the largest on the planet...so big you can see them with the naked eye.
Maybe something to consider when medicating and during quarantine.
Its not just the convict tangs but several species of tangs have these specialized bacterial symbionts...they are not all the same and are actually some very interesting bacteria...one of the largest on the planet...so big you can see them with the naked eye.
Maybe something to consider when medicating and during quarantine.
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It's awesome to see how eager your tangs and other fish are to eat. It's unfortunate that the convicts perished. 
I bought one from liveaquaria in 2002ish. It was DOA and I haven't bothered with one since then.
I bought one from liveaquaria in 2002ish. It was DOA and I haven't bothered with one since then.
robert
Valuable Member
Just as a side caution with respect to tangs in general... especially in light of their perceived susceptibility to ich - treatments with copper can be counterproductive; as essential gut-fauna are attacked as well.
Now I'll catch it from the tang police...ich phobic...quarantine crew...lol...I promise not to debate why management is the best approach again...
But not to derail this thread...convict tangs may be more difficult to keep than others due to their dependence on these bacteria - maybe we may disrupt this relationship inadvertantly...
Now I'll catch it from the tang police...ich phobic...quarantine crew...lol...I promise not to debate why management is the best approach again...
But not to derail this thread...convict tangs may be more difficult to keep than others due to their dependence on these bacteria - maybe we may disrupt this relationship inadvertantly...
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So as detailed as your video is, I'm left wondering what you used for a dewormer? Although I think I recall you talking about prazi pro in an older video of yours.
I purchased 2 convicts about 6 months to a year ago. I believe one was from liveaquaria, and the other was from a LFS. Both were quite skinny and not very interested in food throughout quarantine. I did run 2 doses of prazi pro (6 days apart) which is more or less my standard regimen. I also conduct tank transfer method for ich. Pending good results that is all I do unless I find reason to do anything else. I am aware this method of quarantining does nothing for velvet and maybe some others but I have had very good results, and am not doing a whole lot of quarantine at this point as my main tank is overfull.
After about the first week I got them both eating live black worms fairly well. They also ate mysis and reef frenzy but they liked black worms best and wouldn't eat very much of the mysis. They would only eat nori if I rubber banded it to a piece of liverock which of course becomes garbage afterward. Neither would eat pellets. Both fish seemed to only be doing better through quarantine. In the smaller (QT) tank however, they did show some aggression toward each other but nothing major.
I had 2 because I wanted one for my large frag tank, and one for my main display. The one in my frag tank, which was the larger one which I thought was eating better, perished within the month. The smaller one I opted to put in my display because there were 3 other tangs and I figured the smaller one as you stated would be considered less of a threat and learn to eat better from the others. My powder blue tang was relentless and wanting to kill the convict which was only allowed to hover in the top corner, sometimes. I caught the PBT and he was left inside the trap in the tank for probably 2 to 3 months because I had no where else to put him. During this time the convict fattened up, and my purple tang and chevron tang never gave him any trouble. Once I finally had another tank ready for my PBT while I attempted to get him out of the trap he jumped out and back into the tank. He's given some chase since then and has regained his control of the tank but he is more or less reformed IMO.
My convict has done very well. I see them so often I never really considered them to be a difficult fish so I never really looked into it but several people have been surprised to see I have a convict so I'm hearing more and more now about them being a difficult fish. Mine now eats like an absolute pig and is actually the fattest in my tank. I have some pics I just took yesterday I will add once I get them uploaded.
I see you have a nice atlantic blue tang... beautiful. Those are very difficult IMO. It took me 4 tries to get one through QT. I had it for a couple years but I had to re home him because he refused to play nice with my butterfly. I wanted the butterfly more and really just had too many tangs.
I purchased 2 convicts about 6 months to a year ago. I believe one was from liveaquaria, and the other was from a LFS. Both were quite skinny and not very interested in food throughout quarantine. I did run 2 doses of prazi pro (6 days apart) which is more or less my standard regimen. I also conduct tank transfer method for ich. Pending good results that is all I do unless I find reason to do anything else. I am aware this method of quarantining does nothing for velvet and maybe some others but I have had very good results, and am not doing a whole lot of quarantine at this point as my main tank is overfull.
After about the first week I got them both eating live black worms fairly well. They also ate mysis and reef frenzy but they liked black worms best and wouldn't eat very much of the mysis. They would only eat nori if I rubber banded it to a piece of liverock which of course becomes garbage afterward. Neither would eat pellets. Both fish seemed to only be doing better through quarantine. In the smaller (QT) tank however, they did show some aggression toward each other but nothing major.
I had 2 because I wanted one for my large frag tank, and one for my main display. The one in my frag tank, which was the larger one which I thought was eating better, perished within the month. The smaller one I opted to put in my display because there were 3 other tangs and I figured the smaller one as you stated would be considered less of a threat and learn to eat better from the others. My powder blue tang was relentless and wanting to kill the convict which was only allowed to hover in the top corner, sometimes. I caught the PBT and he was left inside the trap in the tank for probably 2 to 3 months because I had no where else to put him. During this time the convict fattened up, and my purple tang and chevron tang never gave him any trouble. Once I finally had another tank ready for my PBT while I attempted to get him out of the trap he jumped out and back into the tank. He's given some chase since then and has regained his control of the tank but he is more or less reformed IMO.
My convict has done very well. I see them so often I never really considered them to be a difficult fish so I never really looked into it but several people have been surprised to see I have a convict so I'm hearing more and more now about them being a difficult fish. Mine now eats like an absolute pig and is actually the fattest in my tank. I have some pics I just took yesterday I will add once I get them uploaded.
I see you have a nice atlantic blue tang... beautiful. Those are very difficult IMO. It took me 4 tries to get one through QT. I had it for a couple years but I had to re home him because he refused to play nice with my butterfly. I wanted the butterfly more and really just had too many tangs.
loumaggs
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It's good to see that you managed to keep them going, I didn't have any aggression from my fish so you even had to over come that hurdle.
My Atlantic blue is one of my favourites, I would say she was difficult.... Won't change colour though. I've seen blue ones at a third the size
I would think the convicts would have a hard time getting enough food with all those bigger tangs, I see the yellow one intimidate one of them in the video. Ive always read that convicts should be the first tang introduced since they are so docile. How long did you have them in qt?
IMO they are one of the more herbivorous tangs and need a lot of in tank algae to survive, and other range will out compete them for it. I know in the wild survive by overwhelming other tangs by sheer numbers and eating off the rock but that's possible in our small tanks. I've seen powder blues that survived on algae in the tank and never took prepared food but they were the lone tang in the tank.
I only quarantine them with tank transfer method so 12 days. When I do that I also treat with prazi pro for flukes and worms. That would have been done on day 1 and day 7. Also I keep macro algae in my fuge. When I qt tangs, I supply several varieties for them to graze on which is hit or miss. There is none in my tank but I feed nori all the time. Every other day if not every day.
lionfish1951
New Member
I never replied before but I thought I would
We have been setting up custom aquariums for over forty years.
We have sold hundreds of convict tangs which do better in threes
With no issue
We never quarantine fish and our customers whose tanks we set up get a thirty day warranty
However in a 125 which is not a huge tank
You have very aggressive tangs
Sohal very aggressive and the Purple next in line
What I tell customers is say your in a car
And I throw a bee or two in, why do you want to get out? Same applies to fish
They can die from stress
Rick
We have been setting up custom aquariums for over forty years.
We have sold hundreds of convict tangs which do better in threes
With no issue
We never quarantine fish and our customers whose tanks we set up get a thirty day warranty
However in a 125 which is not a huge tank
You have very aggressive tangs
Sohal very aggressive and the Purple next in line
What I tell customers is say your in a car
And I throw a bee or two in, why do you want to get out? Same applies to fish
They can die from stress
Rick
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With these its all about location, tankmates and bacteria for me. The gut bacteria has been mentioned already so I won't go into that, for tank mates I think they need a quiet tank where they are top dog at least to begin with (in your vid they were pecking at the grazer where they should be ripping chunks off and blocking other fish) and I think most die in busy tanks because tangs seem to be addictive and people push the boundaries too much imo. The final point about location is where the fish come in from. From you accent I guess your in England like me and for us you need to track down Fuji convicts. These travel much better and TMC get them from time to time but what you more often see is Bali or Indonesian convicts and I believe this is where much of the heartache stems from. They simply don't have the same level of care in the chain which is also a problem with their butterflies like copperbands and where their reputation comes from, pay the extra and get one of those from Australia and they are much hardier.
I think you were right to de-worm and if you used prazi its the same thing I did with mine. She's the only tang in the tank and fat as mud.
I think you were right to de-worm and if you used prazi its the same thing I did with mine. She's the only tang in the tank and fat as mud.
klp
Active Member
This sounds like what we used to see when collectors used broadcast poison to get fish stunned to catch them. I don't remember what they were using, I think it was rotenone. The fish would appear healthy, eat in the LFS and when you got them home. One day within a month or so they would stop eating and then die. Not sure if this is what you and others have run into.
