New yellow tang showing aggression?

[Tylerc33]

Hey guys I just introduced a yellow tang into my tank and it seems like he is chasing the fox face I have in there around and messing with him. He keeps swimming up to it and flaring out his fins is this just a phase or should I consider taking him out

 

[nereefpat]

Tangs and rabbitfishes are distant cousins and competitors for food, and yellow tangs can be bullies...or even murderers. You'll have to keep an eye on it.

The two can be kept together, depending on tank size and food availability. How big is the tank?

 

[Tylerc33]

They are smaller fish they are in a 75 gallon right now but plan on moving them to a 180+ this winter/spring

 

[Tylerc33]

Only other thing I have in tank is 2 small clownfish and 4 frags so it’s not stocked heavy feed them twice a day

 

[Tylerc33]

He hasn’t really done anything to hurt him just kinda follow him around and flare his fins out

 

[DylanE]

Mine did the same thing with my copperband for a few days. Never struck him or anything, just got in his way and flared up. My CB is twice his size and pretty much ignored him, after a few days the tang just stopped.

 

[Tylerc33]

Yeah the tang is a little bigger but the fox face is just swimming away and ignoring him so I’m hoping it’ll stop otherwise I’ll be forced to get rid of one

 

[FishyDP]

Yellow tangs are definitely territorial ime..my yellow tang killed a cbb 3 days after the cbb was introduced to my 150g (6ft). They seemed fine for the first 2 days.. came home 3rd day and saw the cbb with a couple red/bloody marks on its sides, and it was not doing well. I then watched the tang "whip" the cbb with its scalpel several times. It was too late by then..your fox face was introduced before the tang, so hopefully you will have better luck..but any fish that looks similar to the tang may become a target.

 

[Tylerc33]

Hmm sounds like I may have made a mistake getting a yellow tang lol well I’ll keep you guys updated

 

[Medic58]

I believe my yellow tang cause my foxface to jump out the tank. I can’t prove it but I would see the tang messing with the foxface every now and then. Two fish I’m moving to another tank my yellow tang and my clown fish.

 

[Jesterrace]

Hey guys I just introduced a yellow tang into my tank and it seems like he is chasing the fox face I have in there around and messing with him. He keeps swimming up to it and flaring out his fins is this just a phase or should I consider taking him out

Try putting a mirror in, if it goes on or gets worse over the next week or so get rid of him. Yellow Tangs can get pretty aggressive in the 4-5 inch range. I had to fire one from my tank and replace it with a One Spot Foxface. My Tank is much happier without it.

 

[Medic58]

Try putting a mirror in, if it goes on or gets worse over the next week or so get rid of him. Yellow Tangs can get pretty aggressive in the 4-5 inch range. I had to fire one from my tank and replace it with a One Spot Foxface. My Tank is much happier without it.

I’m with you. I can’t wait to evict my yellow tang. I tried everything to keep that fish. A mirror multiple seaweed clips and he was put on time out in the sump for a week. He is just a bad character. I’m going to try a smaller and new yellow tang at some point.

 

[WMR]

Yellow tangs are territorial & aggressive( probaly the most aggressive Zebrasoma tang, IMO). Usually, 2 similarly colored fish that compete for the same food source will fight, the yellow being the aggressor. Keep the foxface & rehome the yellow. If you’re looking for algae eating tangs, try a desjardini tang & a ctenochaetus tang. That way you have 3 efficient algae eating fish that should be compatible with one another. I wouldn’t add them together til you get the 180, good luck

 

[Sailfinguy21]

I have a fox and yellow tang.. they dont bother eachother.. i also have a naso tang and sailfin and tomini tang in my 135... More fish less aggression... or more aggression spread if it does happen.

Yellow tang is nasty in the am with lights on but after 30 min notjing happens.

Watch "My 135 gallon Reef tank" on YouTube

 

[Tylerc33]

What kind of mirror do you guys use and how do you exactly mount it? Sorry still pretty new to this

 

[Tylerc33]

Just tape a mirror to the back or side of it?

 

[Shawna Solomon]

Had the exact same situation, only I introduced the yellow tang first then foxface and he would chase him all the time. It finally stopped. A couple weeks ago I I introduced a sailfin tang almost twice the yellow tang size and he kept trying to cut him with his tail. Yellow tangs are evil lol

 

[Shawna Solomon]

It's a lot easier said than done trying to remove a fish from a tank with rock and corals so we shut the lights off for the night and the yellow tang stopped but started back up when the lights came on. I watched for awhile and just tapped the glass at the yellow tang every time he went towards the sailfin. Nothing really worked but after a day he just left him alone. If I had the choice again I would have left a yellow tang out of my stocking list but there's no way he's coming out unless my tank comes down. Lol

 

[Sailfinguy21]

What ppl dont realize is modt.. not all but most if the time fish aggression will stop after a few days to a week.. It happens to fresh water and salt... what i do is i take a littke hermit crab cage plastic cheap thing from petco that has vents on the top and i put my fish in that and put it in the tank this way my other fish csn see him and i leave it alone for a few days

Thrn i let him out and usually nothing happens.

Right now though i have 2 yellow tangs.. MY yellow tang i bpught like 4 months ago that ive brpught back to life.. and thrn a unexpected yellow tang someonee gave me who was getting out if the hobby.

I put that nee yellow tang in my 135 and my yellpw tang was still in hospital..

But now hes all fixed up and hes going crazy in the 20g long i have him in... I want to put him in my 135... but i dunno if i should.. id be afraid of thrm tearing eachother apart.


Both tanks are next to eachother and for awhile they did look at each but they stopped that now.. So i dunno.. i guess thr only wsy to find out is try