Royal Gramma and black cap basslet

[SwiftStorm]

I have a 75 gallon with 6 fish; 2 clowns, foxface,blenny, cardinal (which is going bye bye), Royal gramma, and a 6 line. Would like to add a yellow tang, melenarus wrasse, cleaner shrimp, and maybe a black cap basslet. My tank is established and the new fish would be coming from the same system.

Do you think the royal and basslet would get along? I think adding all at once would confuse everyone and maybe reduce aggression.

 

[Vakko]

Black caps are very aggressive. Also, watch out for the tang police when mentioning yellow tang in a 75 gallon.

 

[Zionas]

I am not a hardcore Tang police, but Tang and Foxface need at least 100 gallons and 4 feet IMO. Yellow Tang at least 100 gallons and 5 feet is better, same goes for Foxface.

Royal Gramma is peaceful and gets to 3”, Blackcap Basslet is semi-aggressive and gets to 4”. I would be cautious mixing both in the same tank unless it’s very large and you should add the RG first. I would not suggest mixing both species in a tank of your size because I fear the RG will get bullied. However if you want another basslet (and you can find one), Swissguard Basslet or an Assessor can work well.

What kind of Cardinalfish do you have?

 

[SwiftStorm]

I had a bangaii cardinal. He is now gone. He was a big bully. Only thing I've added do far is a cleaner shrimp and some frogspawn .

I understand tangs get big. I also don't mind rehoming then in a couple years. I just don't ever see the foxface picking at the rocks. Just a big eater when I feed.

Thanks

 

[Zionas]

It’s good to know you’ll be rehoming the Foxface and the Tang. I’m sure they’ll appreciate it. Mmmmm I’m not a big fan of Bangaii Cardinals. Have you tried Pajama Cardinals? I’m a much bigger fan of them, they’re around the same size (1/2 an inch larger), generally more peaceful, and you can keep a trio of them.

I supposed you could try a Blackcap Basslet and add it to your larger setup once you upgrade, but my honest opinion is to err on the side of caution and not add a BCB with the RG in your current tank.

If you really want to go ahead with it, make sure both of them have a cave, preferably on opposite ends of the tank. I’m no expert, just my personal thoughts.

 

[Vakko]

I prefer the Orchid over the Blackcap both visually and socially.

 

[mfinn]

I added a pair of Black Caps to my tank that already had a Royal Gramma in it.
They hardly looked at each other.

 

[Jase4224]

I added a pair of Black Caps to my tank that already had a Royal Gramma in it.
They hardly looked at each other.

How big is your tank and how long did those three fish live in peace?

 

[mfinn]

How big is your tank and how long did those three fish live in peace?

It was my 233.
But as I had it setup, they would hang in the same end of the tank. The Black Caps had the right side of the rock pile ( facing the middle of the tank) and the Royal Gramma had the left side of the rock pile facing the end glass.
I had them for about 3 years before I lost them to velvet.

 

[Zionas]

Sorry about your loss. Which fish triggered the velvet? Must have sucked. My guess is a more sensitive species.

That’s a pretty big tank though. So OP I would be cautious about introducing both in a tank of your size.

 

[mfinn]

Sorry about your loss. Which fish triggered the velvet? Must have sucked. My guess is a more sensitive species.

That’s a pretty big tank though. So OP I would be cautious about introducing both in a tank of your size.

It had to have been coral, or inverts.
I run all fish through 30 days of copper and another 6-7 days of prazi pro, even if no symptoms show.

 

[Zionas]

Regardless of what brought it, that sucks. I can’t really keep inverts because I plan to have a pair of Flame Hawks and a Marine Betta, so at least that’s one less potential source of Introduction.

 

[Vakko]

Will Betta eat cleaner shrimp?