Peaceful Dottyback other than Orchid?

[Zionas]

Are there any peaceful Dottybacks other than the Orchid / Fridmani, preferable ones that can be kept in a pair / trio? I’m asking because the Fridmani is almost never available in my part of the world.

Thanks.

 

[725196]

Good question. My experience is they are all aggressive, BUT I am sure there are those who know more than I do. The ones I have kept have always been late additions to the tank and as small as I could get them to decrease aggression. Good luck.

 

[nereefpat]

Orchids are special among dottys in my experience.

But if you can't get them, splendid or indigo would be decent bets, depending on tankmates. Don't get the other purple, or strawberry for dang's sake.

Even better would be black cap basslet, if you can get them, or royal gramma.

 

[Tamberav]

Pseudoplesiops typus

But extremely cryptic/shy and not readily available.

 

[Zionas]

I’ve seen that one on LA, would love to get my hands on a pair if available I see the males and females look very different. Unfortunately have never seen any for sale.

 

[Zionas]

The Splendid Dottyback is fairly common where I am.

 

[Pbh-reef]

Elongated dottyback are supposed to be more peaceful as well

 

[Adamantium]

My indigo dottyback is a model tank-mate.

 

[Zionas]

Hard choices, man. I’ve long debated getting a pair of Splendid Dottybacks (I know the males and females look different) if possible, but I’ll have to choose between them and a Basslet or two.

 

[Hydrored]

I have a splendid and it’s far from ever being aggressive, actually probably the most chill fish other than my fox face. He also has 8 feet of tank to roam so I’m not sure if that helps

 

[Zionas]

That’s a pretty decent sized tank. What other fish are you keeping with it?

 

[Hydrored]

chromis, anthias, kole tang, hawk fish, lawn mower blenny, bi-color blenny, fox face, cardinals, i'm sure i'm missing a couple. 21 fish total, I got rid of all my other tangs

 

[Zionas]

Nice. Why did you get rid of the Tangs though?

And how many Cardinals do you have? Are they Pajama Cardinals?

 

[loui]

I have had elongated for a few years now. Always keeps to himself. Only problem is I rarely see him maybe a couple of times per day, and I have to be looking for him.

 

[Hydrored]

Nice. Why did you get rid of the Tangs though?

And how many Cardinals do you have? Are they Pajama Cardinals?

I had aggression from them, especially the purple tang in my 120. I'm a huge believer that tangs belong in a 6' plus tank, I witnessed it myself that aggression in an 8' all but went away. I had already had the fish sold so I had to let them go after I had upgraded, I probably would've kept them. I like a super chill tank. I have 2 PJ's and 2 cardinals. Anthias and chromis have turned into my favorite fish, a school of 11 is an awesome thing to watch. Just have to really be on point with feeding.

 

[User1]

I have had elongated for a few years now. Always keeps to himself. Only problem is I rarely see him maybe a couple of times per day, and I have to be looking for him.

Sounds like my yellow assessor. It is like a gift I swear. Days go by when I don't see it and then all of a sudden I'll see this upside down splash of yellow go darting by in this cave area I have. Always a joy when I see it.

 

[dtruitt]

Why the desire for a passive dottyback?

There are a lot of fairy wrasses, basslets, and gobies with similar body shapes and behavior. I'd think about other families that may fill that role that a dottyback would serve in your aquarium.

I've heard some people keep dottybacks as utilitarian SPS pest eating fish. Springers Damsels are suspected to eat flatworms and or red bugs as much or more so than dottybacks, and they are quite agreeable with other fish. If you make the mistake of adding more damsels in after your first round of springers, then they can get a little feisty.

For whatever its worth, our orchid dottyback is the shyest fish in our tank. Aggressiveness is going to depend on your definition of "aggressiveness," tank mates, availability of food and hiding places, and the individual fish.

Maybe it would be worth researching what you can do to minimize any dottybacks aggression, rather than looking for a species which is generally not known to be aggressive and hoping the individual you get fits the pattern.

 

[Blknovass]

My splendid is cool as long as my wrasse stays away from the rocks. All other tank mates are fine but for some reason my yellow wrasse is an issue.

 

[Zionas]

May well look into some Fairies for color. What are some of the ones you recommend that are easy to keep?

 

[dtruitt]

May well look into some Fairies for color. What are some of the ones you recommend that are easy to keep?

Any fairy wrasse will be a similar level of "difficulty." They don't respond well to a lot of medications and they should be fed less food a little more frequently.

Leopard and flasher wrasses are generally seen as more difficult than "fairy" wrasses.