Stocking suggestions for 65 g reef

[jzzo]

Hi.
I am a novice reefer with first tank hitting 5 months now. My tank is waterbox 65.4 aio (4ft tank) so I dont have capacity for big skimmer, refugium etc. I run Tunze 9004, filter socks (change two times a week) and do weekly 10-15% water changes. I have tried to aquascape it with plenty of overhangs, hiding places for fish etc.
I am keeping (trying to keep ) a mixed reef with plenty of softies, zoas, lps's and a few easier sps's (seriatopora, pocillopora etc)
As for now I have 6 fish in tank. 2 x ocellaris clownfish, 1 x royal gramma, 1 x lawnmower blenny, 1 x yellow wrasse and 1 x ywg.
These were my "must have" fishes and they have setteled in nicely but now I am kind of stumped on what to go for next. I would like to get more fish because tank with these inhabitants looks a bit empty with only clowns and yellow wrasse being open water swimmers.
So I am looking for suggestions. Since I am a novice my criteria for fish are: 1) hardy and easy to feed and keep in general. 2) Peaceful. I found it stresful when my LMB and YWG were "fighting" over territory and I would like to get fish that would get along. I am not opposed to add semi-aggressive fish last but I dont really want to take too great risks with aggression 3) Not needing to remove fish later due to size. I consider fish my pets and I dont want to give them up when they outgrow the tank. 4) reef safe with caution is fine. I dont plan to keep very pricey lps corals (trachys, scolys etc), so occasional nipping is not a complete deal breaker for me.
I have been thinking of adding 2nd wrasse. Maybe Mccoskers or other flasher wrasse. I have read that they should be fine with yellow wrasse.
Maybe a banggai cardinal or PJ cardinal. I would love to keep a small pack but that seems like a gamble if you get multiple males.
I really like the looks of coral beauty and I could get an aquacultured one which would be a huge plus. Altho here is the question of aggression, tank size and reef safety.
Any other suggestions are greatly appreciated!
Thanks!

 

[vlangel]

Cardinalfish would be a good choice. They will hang in the upper third of the tank and generally are not aggressive and fairly hardy once settled.
You could try a dwarf angelfish like a coral beauty, although they can be pickers of coral. I have found coral beauties to be less so than some of the other dwarf angels.
I have a tomini tang in my tank and they stay smaller than other tangs and help with nuisance algae and detritus. Live Aquaria suggest a 70 gallon tank for both the dwarf angel and the tomini so your tank is close.
Some of the little blennies and gobies make cute additions, like green citrin gobies, neon cleaner gobies, barnacle blennies and bicolor blennies.
If you don't have shrimp or delicate crabs like a pom pom, you could think about a toby pufferfish, like a Valentini. They have lots of personality but also will sometimes munch on coral. Hawkfish also could work but will also hunt inverts like ornamental shrimp and crabs.

 

[jzzo]

Thanks for your input! I have been thinking of the following additions to my reef. How does these sound? I know there are few more risky additions (nothing is ever 100% safe) but I am pretty confident that my aquascape helps to provide ample space for everyone
2 x ocellaris clowns (already in tank)
1 x ywg (already in tank)
1 x lmb (already in tank)
1 x royal gramma (already in tank)
1 x yellow wrasse (already in tank)
1 x midas blenny - I realise that this is a possible issue with LMB and YWG but at least for now they seem pretty passive with blenny mostly getting fat on nori and ywg defending one rock he spends his time under with his pistol shrimp
1 x mccosker wrasse
1 x additional wrasse (not sure about this yet, maybe naoko fairy wrasse, should be fine with yellow and mccosker right? other suggestions are welcome)
1-2 x banggai cardinal (depending if I can get a mated pair or 2x female)
1-2 x springeri damselfish (I realize damsels have high risk of aggression but springeri SEEM to be on the mellow side. I like the colour, hardiness and size), if I skip these the other option is coral beauty which has it's own problems and risks
What does this looke like? All feedback is appreciated. Thanks!
Here are few shots of the tank

 

[Zionas]

Do yourself a favor and get a dwarf angel (maybe I love angels too much). Coral Beauty as you know is available from Biota, so that may be your best option if you’re looking for something captive bred and won’t make you bankrupt.


Other than Springeri, one or a pair of Azures would make for nice, colorful additions too. They’re perhaps my favorite damsel that’s not super aggressive and not rare.

Cardinalfish, a small Fairy / Flasher Wrasse can also work. Smaller wrasses also include the Pink Streak Wrasse (that looks like a miniature Six Line) and the Possum Wrasses although the Possum Wrasses aren’t always easy to get eating and do best with multiple small feedings a day. Not sure about the Pink Streaks.

But all-in-all I am extremely partial to a dwarf angel of some kind.

If your tank is a 4ft tank and you want a Tang, you have a few options but only the smallest of Tangs: Tomini, Kole, Square Tail, and White Tail with White Tail being the most expensive option.

 

[jzzo]

Do yourself a favor and get a dwarf angel (maybe I love angels too much). Coral Beauty as you know is available from Biota, so that may be your best option if you’re looking for something captive bred and won’t make you bankrupt.


Other than Springeri, one or a pair of Azures would make for nice, colorful additions too. They’re perhaps my favorite damsel that’s not super aggressive and not rare.

Cardinalfish, a small Fairy / Flasher Wrasse can also work. Smaller wrasses also include the Pink Streak Wrasse (that looks like a miniature Six Line) and the Possum Wrasses although the Possum Wrasses aren’t always easy to get eating and do best with multiple small feedings a day. Not sure about the Pink Streaks.

But all-in-all I am extremely partial to a dwarf angel of some kind.

If your tank is a 4ft tank and you want a Tang, you have a few options but only the smallest of Tangs: Tomini, Kole, Square Tail, and White Tail with White Tail being the most expensive option.

Good suggestions, thanks. I really like how coral beauty looks and might end up with one. I for some reason am not too keen on tangs and maybe my only ”bigger” fish would be CB. Definetly will go for bred specimen if I can get my hands on one, they are hard to come by here in Europe.

 

[Zionas]

I’m not the biggest fan of Tangs either when compared to angels. Ouch…. Yeah, that sucks. Does your store have any contacts with De Jong Marine Life? Maybe they can help out.

 

[vlangel]

Thanks for your input! I have been thinking of the following additions to my reef. How does these sound? I know there are few more risky additions (nothing is ever 100% safe) but I am pretty confident that my aquascape helps to provide ample space for everyone
2 x ocellaris clowns (already in tank)
1 x ywg (already in tank)
1 x lmb (already in tank)
1 x royal gramma (already in tank)
1 x yellow wrasse (already in tank)
1 x midas blenny - I realise that this is a possible issue with LMB and YWG but at least for now they seem pretty passive with blenny mostly getting fat on nori and ywg defending one rock he spends his time under with his pistol shrimp
1 x mccosker wrasse
1 x additional wrasse (not sure about this yet, maybe naoko fairy wrasse, should be fine with yellow and mccosker right? other suggestions are welcome)
1-2 x banggai cardinal (depending if I can get a mated pair or 2x female)
1-2 x springeri damselfish (I realize damsels have high risk of aggression but springeri SEEM to be on the mellow side. I like the colour, hardiness and size), if I skip these the other option is coral beauty which has it's own problems and risks
What does this looke like? All feedback is appreciated. Thanks!
Here are few shots of the tank

I like your stocking list. I had a midas blenny with a YWG and it was not a problem at all. Not sure about the LMB.
I love my Coral Beauty although it was a little ornery with my yellow tail damsels. More bluff than bite and I did have 3 damsels to spread out the aggression.
I will be interested in what you add and how it goes.

 

[jzzo]

I ll update a bit. I WAS able to get captive bred CB. It cost five times as much as wild caught but considering it might live up to a decade with good care, I think it was worth the cost. He eats readily, is really active and overall great character. He occasionally nips at Zoas but has not devoured them yet if I cant keep zoas with him then so be it. I realise it would have made more sense to add him last but availability for them is so scarce that I ”had” to pull the trigger when I had the chance

 

[vlangel]

I ll update a bit. I WAS able to get captive bred CB. It cost five times as much as wild caught but considering it might live up to a decade with good care, I think it was worth the cost. He eats readily, is really active and overall great character. He occasionally nips at Zoas but has not devoured them yet if I cant keep zoas with him then so be it. I realise it would have made more sense to add him last but availability for them is so scarce that I ”had” to pull the trigger when I had the chance

I am glad that you were able to get one. Mine picks around all the time but does not devour anything. I think Angelica is always on the lookout for little patches of algae and I am glad about that.

Yours is a beauty with so much of the orange color in its body. Angelica is more dark blue with just hints of the orange.

 

[jzzo]

Small update. I have added mccosker and banggai cardinal. Both are doing great and especially mccosker has brought lot of movement and life to the tank. They seem to always cruise around with yellow wrasse. I am very happy with how things are going so far.
Now I have total of 9 fishes so I thing I am 1-3 fishes short of max capacity.
I have decided to skip fairy wrasse. I think they are not as beginner friendly and propably would need a little bit bigger tank.
I have been pondering over the following fishes. I would like to hear your comments (yay or nay) and experiences:

Midas blenny - pretty, active, should be peaceful. Cons: possible aggression issues with lmb/ywg. Short lived(?)

Talbot/springeri damsel - pretty, active, hardy, pest control, good size. Cons: aggression

Flame hawkfish - great character, hardy, I just love the looks cons: possible invert hazard (only have cleaner shrimp atm but might add emerald crabs and pistol shrimp down the road)

tomini tang - got inspiration from post above. They are pretty, eat algea, can have long lifespan and seem to be on easier side (compared to other tangs), cons: not sure if my tank is big enough for one long term (42,7” x 19,7” x 17,7”), could turn aggressive, susceptible to ich.

What do you think? Any other suggestions are also welcome

 

[vlangel]

I still think that a tomini tang would do well with the inhabitants you have and the dimensions of your tank. They are nice as far as picking detritus and nuisance algae. I have not found my tomini to be as susceptible to ich as other tangs, although I have seen my neon cleaner goby try to clean it once or twice.

A midas blenny is a combtooth and will also graze on nuisance algae. Make sure you have a tight top on the tank. They are jumpers if startled. My midas and YWG were fine together. The midas inhabited the top half of the tank and the YWG stayed on the sandbed.

A hawkfish would work nicely but you are correct in that inverts could end up being dinner.

Have you considered a chalk basselet? I am considering a pair myself. KP Aquatics says they get along with other basselets so should be ok with the royal Gramma.

 

[jzzo]

Thanks for feedback, again. I will look up chalk basslet

 

[jzzo]

Hello!
I ll make a quick update. Since last update I added Flame Hawkfish and 3 springeri damsels. So far so good, damsels are pretty peaceful (altho my clowns were jerks at them first) but they hold on their own. Flame hawk is such a cool character. He tried to hunt my Nassarius snails at first but has since given up on that. Leaves cleaner shrimp alone and even lets it clean him from time to time.
I now have 13 fish in total and I think I am at full capacity. Especially considering most of the fish are not yet near at their max size After latest additions I saw some increase on algea but that has started to settle down and my nutrients are ok. (no3 ~ 5, po4 0,05)

I am really happy so far with the fish selection. They occupy water column, rocks and caves. I also like the mix and match of colors.


Thanks for all the suggestions.

 

[vlangel]

Hello!
I ll make a quick update. Since last update I added Flame Hawkfish and 3 springeri damsels. So far so good, damsels are pretty peaceful (altho my clowns were jerks at them first) but they hold on their own. Flame hawk is such a cool character. He tried to hunt my Nassarius snails at first but has since given up on that. Leaves cleaner shrimp alone and even lets it clean him from time to time.
I now have 13 fish in total and I think I am at full capacity. Especially considering most of the fish are not yet near at their max size After latest additions I saw some increase on algea but that has started to settle down and my nutrients are ok. (no3 ~ 5, po4 0,05)

I am really happy so far with the fish selection. They occupy water column, rocks and caves. I also like the mix and match of colors.


Thanks for all the suggestions.

Looks great!