Perhaps an odd question from a new reef sailor

Dinkin's Aquatic Gardens
Jump to Last
B

Back where it all began

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Jun 6, 2019
Messages
404
Reaction score
269
Location
White Plains, new york
What state or country do you live in
New York
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
greetings all. As we all know, some fish are described as reef incompatible due to their nibbling etc. I was wondering about their behavior out in the wild. Does the scale of our aquariums modify their behavior since their water space is limited, and are there any means to compensate for this. I’d like to have live rock and some corals with some of these incompatible beings, or am it as nuts as people say, ha.
Thanks.
 
Welcome to R2R!!! The short answer is yes - glass boxes impacts fish behavior.

FishLipstick.gif


This is a great question and I look forward to seeing the array of responses! We're glad you're here and now part of this really neat community!
 
WWC
Nutramar Foods
Back where it all began said:
greetings all. As we all know, some fish are described as reef incompatible due to their nibbling etc. I was wondering about their behavior out in the wild. Does the scale of our aquariums modify their behavior since their water space is limited, and are there any means to compensate for this. I’d like to have live rock and some corals with some of these incompatible beings, or am it as nuts as people say, ha.
Thanks.
Click to expand...

A parrotfish in the wild cruises around and takes bites from coral heads more or less at random. In your tank, it takes a bite, "goes around the block" and then bites the same live coral head over and over until you are left with coral sand and a hungry fish that wants more coral.
It's not quite that simple, but that is the general idea.

Welcome to Reef2Reef!
 
Tidal Gardens
Welcome to the reef! I believe when fish are kept in a glass box, their behavior changes. All you have to do is dive a reef somewhere to see the difference. Still, some fish are obligate coralavores. The parrotfish that @KrisReef mentioned is a great example. Others, like some of the questionable dwarf angels, like to pull the slime off corals and often like the fleshy parts of LPSs. In a contained environment, the have a limited amount of choices. They end up nibbling on the same stuff over and over. I would love to have some large butterflies or angels but I have so much money dumped into corals that I would be a fool to try it.
 
Back where it all began said:
greetings all. As we all know, some fish are described as reef incompatible due to their nibbling etc. I was wondering about their behavior out in the wild. Does the scale of our aquariums modify their behavior since their water space is limited, and are there any means to compensate for this. I’d like to have live rock and some corals with some of these incompatible beings, or am it as nuts as people say, ha.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Wild fish are constantly foraging for food and have an adequate source such as plankton, vegetation, etc. In closed tank environment, they use the same habits but are limited to constant source and tend to nibble on coral

 
Dinkin's Aquatic Gardens

IF YOU HAD TO TAKE A REEFING EXAM, WOULD YOU PASS?

  • Yes!

    Votes: 32 45.7%

  • Not yet, but I have one that I want to buy in mind!

    Votes: 9 12.9%

  • No.

    Votes: 26 37.1%

  • Other (please explain).

    Votes: 3 4.3%
See comments…

New Posts

Top Shelf Aquatics
Chewy.com
TCK Corals
Deltec
Tidal Gardens
Nutramar Foods
Dinkins Aquatic Gardens
World Wide Corals
New Posts
Back
Top