Pairing Longnose Butterflyfish

[Steve and his Animals]

I recently acquired 5 young (about 2.5 inches from base of tail to base of snout) Forcipiger flavissimus. They're in my 40 gallon QT together along with some other small fish. I was looking for any experience pairing this species specifically or even just butterflies in general: any behaviors I should watch out for, good/bad signs, etc.

It's only been a couple days so far but it seems like none of them really like each other: a decent amount of posturing and some quick chasing away here and there.

Am I just really unlucky? How long do they usually take to figure things out?

 

[dhanking]

Apparently they don't like their own species. While researching I did notice however that keeping them in salinity of 1.020 was better for them so that might help them pair up. Over time they just slowly pair up but the tank for pairing needs to be 100 gal.

 

[Bubbles!]

At 2.5 inches, they're most likely still juveniles, so pairing won't happen until they're larger/ more mature. Just keep them well fed and healthy and nature will take its course.
As dhanking mentioned, they're going to need a bigger tank, ideally with LOTS of hiding places. The more, the better. It will help keep aggression down.
Good luck!

 

[Steve and his Animals]

At 2.5 inches, they're most likely still juveniles, so pairing won't happen until they're larger/ more mature. Just keep them well fed and healthy and nature will take its course.
As dhanking mentioned, they're going to need a bigger tank, ideally with LOTS of hiding places. The more, the better. It will help keep aggression down.
Good luck!

That's interesting, because, while I don't remember where exactly, I've read that butterflies often pair when younger/when they first reach maturity. Maybe that isn't the case with all species. I'll keep that in mind though.

 

[Esox]

I recently acquired 5 young (about 2.5 inches from base of tail to base of snout) Forcipiger flavissimus. They're in my 40 gallon QT together along with some other small fish. I was looking for any experience pairing this species specifically or even just butterflies in general: any behaviors I should watch out for, good/bad signs, etc.

It's only been a couple days so far but it seems like none of them really like each other: a decent amount of posturing and some quick chasing away here and there.

Am I just really unlucky? How long do they usually take to figure things out?

Did any of them ever pair up?

 

[Steve and his Animals]

Did any of them ever pair up?

Lost the group to a disease I couldn't ID. Didn't want to try again right away so I just have a solo one in my reef now.

 

[Esox]

Lost the group to a disease I couldn't ID.

Sorry to hear that. A pair of longnose butterflyfish would really stand out.

 

[Steve and his Animals]

Sorry to hear that. A pair of longnose butterflyfish would really stand out.

I'm probably going to try again soon. I got the group for like $25-$30 each through the store I work at, but that's back when they were around $18 wholesale.