single chromis in 40 gallon reef?

[LifeOfAquatics]

would a SINGLE chromis be fine in a 40 gallon with 1-2 clownfish, 1 orchid dottyback, 1 midas blenny, 1 banggaii cardinal, 1-2 fairy wrasses, and 1 yellow coris wrasse? (will be no more than 7 fish in the end including this single chromis). I've heard horrible stories with chromis in a group where one kills the rest, but would 1 single chromis be ok? or would it be aggressive?

 

[40g Nano]

I think 1 chromis would do fine. Although, for long term success, chromis need to be fed multiple times a day with foods high in carbohydrates since they are constant swimmers

 

[40g Nano]

Im thinking of getting a small school for my 90g, soon to be 73g

 

[LifeOfAquatics]

I think 1 chromis would do fine. Although, for long term success, chromis need to be fed multiple times a day with foods high in carbohydrates since they are constant swimmers

so it wouldnt be aggressive is what your saying to my other fish yes? any suggestions on foods good for a chromis?

 

[40g Nano]

so it wouldnt be aggressive is what your saying to my other fish yes? any suggestions on foods good for a chromis?

i dont think it will be aggressive to your other fish, although, i would be careful in adding 3 wrasses to a 40g. A varied diet is always best for fish (flakes/pellets and a different variety of frozen or lrs)

 

[LifeOfAquatics]

i dont think it will be aggressive to your other fish, although, i would be careful in adding 3 wrasses to a 40g. A varied diet is always best for fish (flakes/pellets and a different variety of frozen or lrs)

ok thats good, as catching it would prove rlly difficult. yea I probably wont do that. most would be 1 fairy and 1 yellow coris and even then I don't think ill do the yellow coris.

also, would you say a yellow coris would be fine in a 40 or should it have even more space?

 

[damsels are not mean]

Sounds like a depressing existence for a chromis as they are very social

 

[Saltyanimals]

Single should be fine especially in a 40b. They grow surprisingly fast. My trio started fairly small at 1inch and now closer to 2in about 6-8 months. They're not aggressive to other fish. Just aggressive eaters when competing at feeding time. The aggression within their group may be true. Key here is to add more than you want expecting they'll peck order down to the number they want to be. Could be this or just sensitive fish to settle down when first introduced. For me it's a trio. I've tried 4s, 5s.. always go back down to 3. So I left them there at 3.

 

[Unenabled]

I have a single blue chromis in my 40g. It started out as 2 and I got them for the cycling process. One killed the other and I couldn't get him out so I thought "screw this he can stay" and just began stocking with other fish. I put 2 clowns in and he didnt bother them much, but he was a little defensive. After 3 weeks he swims around with the clowns and follows them around the tank in a makeshift school. The only problem i've had recently with it was when I added a tailspot blenny. The chromis would attack at whenever it would come out of its hiding spot. The blenny eventually started fighting back and chilling on the top of the rockwork, and the chromis attacked it less. After about a week, the chromis doesn't seem to care about the blenny anymore.

For all the people saying they aren't aggressive, they are still damsels. They may not be as aggressive as other damsels, but that doesn't mean they can't be aggressive fish.

Oh and 3 wrasses in a 40g is going to be tough. Unless you REALLY know what you're doing and you have an understanding of how certain wrasses will be together in a 40g, I would advise against it. Personally, I think you'd be pushing it with 1, but that depends on the kind of wrasse considering most of them would need like a 50g or a 60g at least.

Anyways, my point is that if you get a Chromis you should make sure that your other fish can stand up to it. If they get bullied and they immediately flee every time, then the Chromis is just going to keep bullying it until they die. If they stand their ground, the chromis will eventually learn not to mess with it, and it will all be fine.

Or you just get lucky and get a really timid chromis.

 

[Saltyanimals]

I must have some wimpy chormis.

Actually your experience applies to most fish. There's always some order or hierarchy in the tank and every new fish upsets or resets this hierarchy as they reestablish the new order. The degree this happens varies with the size of the tank and what the fish considers its territory. And this territory is either specific preference for sand, rock or swim space based on preferred water flow. And of course food.

I've always considered myself coral more than fish. And that was prob because I didn't have the space in a 65 to have many fish. After moving to an 180 I overloaded in fish and learned alot about this behavior as my fish get introduced. And I do that in batches to help distribute out aggression. I'm closer to 30 fish now in a mixed reef and the sheer number may be overwhelming. However I realized it's not the # as long as they all have their space based on their species. i.e. anthias are open water. Gobies like the bottom. Perching fish have enough rock. Chromis like the SPS to hide in. All like their natural inhabitants. Figure this out and you can get alot of fish in a smaller tank assuming you're able to manage the bioload and nutrients.

Honestly I wouldn't be concerned with 3 chromis in a 40b except I'm not familiar with some of your existing species. The clowns stay within a small range mostly in the nems so you can actually attempt to move them to a region by moving their nem. Midas like to perch so takes up little space. Chromis stay out in the open water. My wrasse always hunting bottom half near the sand and rock. You get the idea. Just factor in their growth relative to the current space.

This

 

[Unenabled]

I must have some wimpy chormis.

Actually your experience applies to most fish. There's always some order or hierarchy in the tank and every new fish upsets or resets this hierarchy as they reestablish the new order. The degree this happens varies with the size of the tank and what the fish considers its territory. And this territory is either specific preference for sand, rock or swim space based on preferred water flow. And of course food.

I've always considered myself coral more than fish. And that was prob because I didn't have the space in a 65 to have many fish. After moving to an 180 I overloaded in fish and learned alot about this behavior as my fish get introduced. And I do that in batches to help distribute out aggression. I'm closer to 30 fish now in a mixed reef and the sheer number may be overwhelming. However I realized it's not the # as long as they all have their space based on their species. i.e. anthias are open water. Gobies like the bottom. Perching fish have enough rock. Chromis like the SPS to hide in. All like their natural inhabitants. Figure this out and you can get alot of fish in a smaller tank assuming you're able to manage the bioload and nutrients.

Honestly I wouldn't be concerned with 3 chromis in a 40b except I'm not familiar with some of your existing species. The clowns stay within a small range mostly in the nems so you can actually attempt to move them to a region by moving their nem. Midas like to perch so takes up little space. Chromis stay out in the open water. My wrasse always hunting bottom half near the sand and rock. You get the idea. Just factor in their growth relative to the current space.

This

He’s asking about 3 wrasses in a 40g, not chromis. You could put 3 chromis in a 5g and they would be fine

 

[Unenabled]

I must have some wimpy chormis.

Actually your experience applies to most fish. There's always some order or hierarchy in the tank and every new fish upsets or resets this hierarchy as they reestablish the new order. The degree this happens varies with the size of the tank and what the fish considers its territory. And this territory is either specific preference for sand, rock or swim space based on preferred water flow. And of course food.

I've always considered myself coral more than fish. And that was prob because I didn't have the space in a 65 to have many fish. After moving to an 180 I overloaded in fish and learned alot about this behavior as my fish get introduced. And I do that in batches to help distribute out aggression. I'm closer to 30 fish now in a mixed reef and the sheer number may be overwhelming. However I realized it's not the # as long as they all have their space based on their species. i.e. anthias are open water. Gobies like the bottom. Perching fish have enough rock. Chromis like the SPS to hide in. All like their natural inhabitants. Figure this out and you can get alot of fish in a smaller tank assuming you're able to manage the bioload and nutrients.

Honestly I wouldn't be concerned with 3 chromis in a 40b except I'm not familiar with some of your existing species. The clowns stay within a small range mostly in the nems so you can actually attempt to move them to a region by moving their nem. Midas like to perch so takes up little space. Chromis stay out in the open water. My wrasse always hunting bottom half near the sand and rock. You get the idea. Just factor in their growth relative to the current space.

This

Oh and as for the territory thing, that isn’t really that relevant when there’s only 2 or 3 fish in the tank, plus the blenny was moving around and out of the chromis’ territory and it still got attacked.

 

[Saltyanimals]

He’s asking about 3 wrasses in a 40g, not chromis. You could put 3 chromis in a 5g and they would be fine

That is ill-advised my friend for 3 in a 5g. Revisit that statement in 6 months and you will see. 2-3 fish behavior today will change and their needs change as they get bigger. Sounds tang-police-like, but it's not trying to restrict the number of fish you can get. Quite the opposite that I'm trying to help you understand you can put more fish in the tank as you learn about their individual needs.

These comment are here to try and help others plan for success long term.

 

[Harold999]

Sounds like a depressing existence for a chromis as they are very social

My single chromis hangs out with the clowns all day, thinking he's a clown. No problem at all.