Stocking list for my 180 (a work in progress)

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

i would drop a couple tangs and wrasses and add some more cool gobies....just my opinion..i have a 180 also

Thanks for the idea. What is your stock list?

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Newly updated idea list...

BTW, anything I can order from LA, I plan to get from there bc of their 14-day guarantee.

Also, the only inverts (besides snails) that I plan to keep are a couple of BTA's and some clams...will I have any issues with any of these fish on those?

Possible fish for 180:
Tangs:
· Blue Tang
· Blonde Naso Tang
· Purple Tang
· Yellow Tang
· Red Sea Sailfin Tang
· Orangeshoulder Tang
· Powder Brown Tang
· Atlantic Blue Tang
Wrasses:
· Christmas wrasse (pair)
· Golden Rhomboidalis Wrasse
· Orange Back Fairy Wrasse
· Leopard Wrasse (not sure if I should get the blue star leopard wrasse or just the normal one)
· Carpenter’s Flasher Wrasse
· McCosker’s Flasher wrasse
· Eightline Flasher Wrasse
· Yellow-Flanked Fairy Wrasse
· Red Velvet Fairy Wrasse
· Longfin Fairy Wrasse
· Whip Fin Fairy Wrasse
· Bluehead Fairy Wrasse
Clowns:
· Pair of Blue Ice Clowns or Picasso Clowns
· Pair of Phantom Clowns
Anthias:
· Squareback Anthias (just 1 terminal male...love the colors)
· Bartlett’s Anthias (trio?)
Others:
· Pair of red mandarin gobies
· Copperband butterfly
· Starry Blenny
· Blue Reef Chromis (trio)
· Firefish (trio)
· Rainford’s Goby
· Gold Assessor Basslet
· Yellow Candy Hogfish
· Midas Blenny
· Dragonface pipefish (somebody said these are good for keeping up with redbugs...I think they're cool fish...but not totally decided that I would add them...worried about them in the flow of a reef tank...but I do like pipefish...can't decide...)
· Foxface

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Someone pointed out that the Rainfords goby probably wouldn't do well in a heavily stocked tank, so he's getting removed from the list. I'm thinking the same will be true for the firefish... Other thoughts?

 

[Marshall O]

For Wrasses, IMO you will want to definitely remove the Whipfin (C. filamentosus[FONT=verdana, geneva, lucida, lucida grande, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]) & Red Velvet (C. rubrisquamis). Longfin (C. rubriventralis) is another that is questionable. Other are all ok, except confirm the scientific name for the "Christmas" Wrasse". You want H. claudia, not H. ornatissimus. Here is some more reading on reef safe wrasses for you: [/FONT]All About Reef Safe Wrasses - 3reef Reef Aquarium Forumangs - I am not an expert by any means, but here are my thoughts:

· Blue Tang - Ok.
· Blonde Naso Tang - These really are borderline for a 180. They should really be in an 8' tank minimum IMO.
· Purple Tang - Ok, but I would recommend only one Zebrasoma.
· Yellow Tang - Same as Purple; You may get lucky; you may not.
· Red Sea Sailfin Tang - Again, same as Purple & Yellow. And also borderline on the size (although the Red Sea variants stay a bit smaller IIRC) and also can be more on the aggressive side IIRC.
· Orangeshoulder Tang - Ok
· Powder Brown Tang -Ok, mixed reports on how aggressive they are with other tangs. I myself am adding one along with a Kole Tang to my 125.
· Atlantic Blue Tang - Not as hardy as most other tangs from what I know, but otherwise should be fine.

Finally, Pipefish belong in species tanks, not in mixed reefs IMO. Care is very similar to Seahorses.

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

For Wrasses, IMO you will want to definitely remove the Whipfin (C. filamentosus[FONT=verdana, geneva, lucida, lucida grande, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]) & Red Velvet (C. rubrisquamis). Longfin (C. rubriventralis) is another that is questionable. Other are all ok, except confirm the scientific name for the "Christmas" Wrasse". You want H. claudia, not H. ornatissimus. Here is some more reading on reef safe wrasses for you: [/FONT]All About Reef Safe Wrasses - 3reef Reef Aquarium Forumangs - I am not an expert by any means, but here are my thoughts:

· Blue Tang - Ok.
· Blonde Naso Tang - These really are borderline for a 180. They should really be in an 8' tank minimum IMO.
· Purple Tang - Ok, but I would recommend only one Zebrasoma.
· Yellow Tang - Same as Purple; You may get lucky; you may not.
· Red Sea Sailfin Tang - Again, same as Purple & Yellow. And also borderline on the size (although the Red Sea variants stay a bit smaller IIRC) and also can be more on the aggressive side IIRC.
· Orangeshoulder Tang - Ok
· Powder Brown Tang -Ok, mixed reports on how aggressive they are with other tangs. I myself am adding one along with a Kole Tang to my 125.
· Atlantic Blue Tang - Not as hardy as most other tangs from what I know, but otherwise should be fine.

Finally, Pipefish belong in species tanks, not in mixed reefs IMO. Care is very similar to Seahorses.

Thanks very much for the thoughts! I appreciate you being so thorough!

I'm still reading up on wrasses, so I'll definitely check on the link you gave me. About the ones you said I should avoid, is that because they're aggressive or too shy? Also, about what number should I limit myself to on wrasses in a 180? Hopefully, I'll have a pic of my Christmas wrasses by the end of the day.

As far as tangs go, I think I've managed to narrow the list to 5 for now (after reading your thoughts, I decided to bump the Atlantic blue and powder brown). I've kept the 3 zebrasomas together successfully before (I think the key is adding them at the same time and making sure there are an odd number of them), so I'm thinking I'll try it again (I'll be stocking my 120 during this time too, so if the three don't work out, it shouldn't be too hard to split them up).

I've been kind of on the fence about the pipefish already...I know a couple of guys who've kept them successfully in a mixed reef, but I don't know that I want to chance it. I think I may hold off on those and maybe try them once I have some kind of backup plan.

 

[Marshall O]

The Wrasses mentioned are all aggressive towards other Fairy/Flasher Wrasses, and so really should be avoided when mixed with other Fairy/Flashers.

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

The Wrasses mentioned are all aggressive towards other Fairy/Flasher Wrasses, and so really should be avoided when mixed with other Fairy/Flashers.

Thanks. I'll remove those from my list.

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Newly edited list

Possible fish for 180:

Tangs:
· Blue Hippo Tang
· Blonde Naso Tang
· Purple Tang
· Yellow Tang
· Red Sea Sailfin Tang
Wrasses:
· Christmas wrasse (pair)
· Golden Rhomboidalis Wrasse
· Orange Back Fairy Wrasse
· blue star leopard wrasse
· Carpenter’s Flasher Wrasse
· McCosker’s Flasher wrasse
· Eightline Flasher Wrasse
· Yellow-Flanked Fairy Wrasse
· Bluehead Fairy Wrasse
Clowns:
· Pair of Blue Ice Clowns or Picasso Clowns
· Pair of Phantom Clowns
Anthias:
· Squareback Anthias (just 1 terminal male...love the colors)
· Bartlett’s Anthias (trio)
Others:
· Pair of red mandarin gobies
· Copperband butterfly
· Starry Blenny
· Blue Reef Chromis (trio)
· Gold Assessor Basslet
· Yellow Candy Hogfish
· Midas Blenny
· Dragonface pipefish

Thoughts?

Sent from my HTCONE using Tapatalk

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Removed the foxface... Planning on 5 tangs at this point, so I don't think I need another grazer.

 

[Marshall O]

Removed the foxface... Planning on 5 tangs at this point, so I don't think I need another grazer.

Just throwing this out there, but Foxfaces are better algae grazers than Tangs, are more disease resistant, and more peaceful (albeit a bit skittish!). I would keep one and boot one of the Tangs myself

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Added scientific names for the wrasses since that seems to be the best way to identify them. I took these names from the Live Aquaria website.

Possible fish for 180:

Tangs:
· Blue Hippo Tang
· Blonde Naso Tang
· Purple Tang
· Yellow Tang
· Red Sea Sailfin Tang
Wrasses:
· Christmas wrasse (pair) (Halichoeres melanurus)
· Golden Rhomboidalis Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus rhomboidalis)
· Orange Back Fairy Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus aurantidorsalis)
· blue star leopard wrasse (Macropharyngodon bipartitus)
· Carpenter’s Flasher Wrasse (Paracheilinus carpenteri)
· McCosker’s Flasher wrasse (Paracheilinus mccoskeri)
· Eightline Flasher Wrasse (Paracheilinus octotaenia)
· Yellow-Flanked Fairy Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus lyukyuensis)
· Bluehead Fairy Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus cyanopleura)
Clowns:
· Pair of Blue Ice Clowns or Picasso Clowns
· Pair of Phantom Clowns
Anthias:
· Squareback Anthias (just 1 terminal male...love the colors)
· Bartlett’s Anthias (trio?)
Others:
· Pair of red mandarin gobies
· Copperband butterfly
· Starry Blenny
· Blue Reef Chromis (trio)
· Gold Assessor Basslet
· Yellow Candy Hogfish
· Midas Blenny
· Dragonface pipefish

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Btw, still need to get the scientific name for my Christmas wrasse pair (I'm thinking malanurus). Here are some pics taken with phone...

Male:

Female:

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Confirmed! Halichoeres melanurus

 

[Emerdog]

I would go with the chromis

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Latest update to my list. Thoughts?

Possible fish for 180:

Tangs:
· Blue Hippo Tang
· Blonde Naso Tang
· Yellow Tang
Wrasses:
· Christmas wrasse (pair) (Halichoeres melanurus)
· Golden Rhomboidalis Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus rhomboidalis)
· Orange Back Fairy Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus aurantidorsalis)
· blue star leopard wrasse (Macropharyngodon bipartitus)
· Carpenter’s Flasher Wrasse (Paracheilinus carpenteri)
· McCosker’s Flasher wrasse (Paracheilinus mccoskeri)
· ?Linespot Flasher Wrasse (Paracheilinus lineopunctatus? - still deciding on this one...
· Yellow-Flanked Fairy Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus lyukyuensis)
· Bluehead Fairy Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus cyanopleura)
· YellowTail Tamarin Wrasse (Anampses meleagrides)
Clowns:
· Pair of Black Ice Clowns
Anthias:
· Bartlett’s Anthias (trio)
Others:
· Pair of green mandarin gobies
· Starry Blenny
· Blue Reef Chromis (trio)
· Yellow Candy Hogfish
· Midas Blenny

 

[Marshall O]

I actually like your list a lot. Some will say that even a 180 is not large enough for a Naso (and should be in a 8' or 10' long tank minimum). Otherwise, I think you have chosen a nice group of fish and will have very few aggressors.

 

[Aquaph8]

Great list, I wouldn't bother with a trio of chromis. Most likely they'll end up one.

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

I actually like your list a lot. Some will say that even a 180 is not large enough for a Naso (and should be in a 8' or 10' long tank minimum). Otherwise, I think you have chosen a nice group of fish and will have very few aggressors.

Thanks! It's taken a bit of work (as this thread indicates), but I'm happy with where it's landing.

I am still debating the naso myself. I think I have enough room for him, but I might add a different tang instead. Decisions...decisions... LOL

Great list, I wouldn't bother with a trio of chromis. Most likely they'll end up one.

Thanks. I probably wouldn't add them for a while anyway. I'm focused on getting my wrasse collection done first. Then I want the tangs after that.

My one big wish is that diver's den would get all of the wrasses I'm looking for at the same time so I could order them all at once knowing they'd already been under observation. LOL

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

I've added a color code for knowing what's been added and what hasn't. LOL :nerd: :nerd::nerd: :nerd:

Already added - Black
On order - Purple
To be added - Red

Possible fish for 180:

Tangs:
· Blue Hippo Tang
· Blonde Naso Tang
· Yellow Tang
Wrasses:
· Christmas wrasse (pair) (Halichoeres melanurus)
· Golden Rhomboidalis Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus rhomboidalis)
· Orange Back Fairy Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus aurantidorsalis)
· blue star leopard wrasse (Macropharyngodon bipartitus)
· Carpenter’s Flasher Wrasse (Paracheilinus carpenteri)
· McCosker’s Flasher wrasse (Paracheilinus mccoskeri)
· Linespot Flasher Wrasse (Paracheilinus lineopunctatus)
· Yellow-Flanked Fairy Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus lyukyuensis)
· Bluehead Fairy Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus cyanopleura)
· YellowTail Tamarin Wrasse (Anampses meleagrides)
Clowns:
· Pair of Black Ice Clowns
Anthias:
· Bartlett’s Anthias (trio)
Others:
· Pair of green mandarin gobies (already have the female)
· Matted Filefish (useless fish...got him for aiptasia...hasn't done anything...)
· Starry Blenny
· Blue Reef Chromis (trio)
· Yellow Candy Hogfish
· Midas Blenny

 

[Quinn123]

no angel fish? got to at least have one angel fish. i have a 180 also and this is my list--black tang-purple tang-yellow tang- adult regal angel-flame wrasse- lineatus wrass- pair of wyoming clown and a pair black snow flake clown- cleaner wrasse and two blue reef chromis. also thinking about adding 5 bartletts anthias