Hey all! I have a 65B. I have some leathers and zoas and the goal is to have a mixed reef. I'm having trouble finding fish to stock my ta k with. Right now I have 2 clowns and a yellow tang (who will be moved to a frag tank soon). I also have a couple emerald crabs, a cleaner shrimp, a fire shrimp, various snails, a red linkia star, and hermit crabs. What should I get?
Suggested Fish
- Thread starter codytbuckner
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Hawkfish, firefish, halichoeres wrasse (like yellow, may pick at inverts) or a smaller wrasse like pink streak/wetmorella/pseudocheilinus (can be aggressive), centropyge angel (may pick at corals), basslet (yellow assessor is my favorite), shrimp goby pair, cardinalfish, lawnmower blenny
Matt Carden
Valuable Member
Wrasse are great fish and beautiful. https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/all-about-reef-safe-wrasses-in-aquaria.259894/
My Coral Beauty leaves everything alone but I feed fresh frozen Mussels, clams, and Oysters so my fish are well fed.
My Coral Beauty leaves everything alone but I feed fresh frozen Mussels, clams, and Oysters so my fish are well fed.
codytbuckner
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I really like my open top though lol. I heard wrasses jump
Dkeller_nc
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Since you have a rimmed tank, you could consider getting a screen kit and putting a screen cover on the tank. Unlike a rimless, the screen will be invisible from the front of the tank.
And yes, carpet-surfing is a real concern with most wrasses. Leopard wrasses are little less prone to this, but they are definitely not beginner (or even intermediate) fish. Lolmatt mentioned basslets - they're excellent reef fish for smaller tanks; in addition to the yellow assessor, there are black cap basslets, swissguard basslets, blue assessors, royal grammas, etc... One of the advantages of these fish in addition to their appearance is that they're strict planktivores - they won't touch corals, clams, or other inverts.
If you want schooling fish, blue-eyed cardinals are some of my favorites. While not as showy as some reef fish, they're absolutely peaceful, and are constantly swimming in the mid-water column. They're not territorial, and don't hide unless kept with aggressive species.
Various other blennies and/or gobies would add some interest. Golden Midas Blennies, in particular, are amusing fish.
And if you're looking for a centerpiece, very little compares to the dwarf angels in a smaller tank. That said, some will nip at clams and corals, though I've never had one in 30 years of reefing that actually did much damage. But I've also never had a lemon peel, either, and these are notorious for nipping at corals and clams.
And yes, carpet-surfing is a real concern with most wrasses. Leopard wrasses are little less prone to this, but they are definitely not beginner (or even intermediate) fish. Lolmatt mentioned basslets - they're excellent reef fish for smaller tanks; in addition to the yellow assessor, there are black cap basslets, swissguard basslets, blue assessors, royal grammas, etc... One of the advantages of these fish in addition to their appearance is that they're strict planktivores - they won't touch corals, clams, or other inverts.
If you want schooling fish, blue-eyed cardinals are some of my favorites. While not as showy as some reef fish, they're absolutely peaceful, and are constantly swimming in the mid-water column. They're not territorial, and don't hide unless kept with aggressive species.
Various other blennies and/or gobies would add some interest. Golden Midas Blennies, in particular, are amusing fish.
And if you're looking for a centerpiece, very little compares to the dwarf angels in a smaller tank. That said, some will nip at clams and corals, though I've never had one in 30 years of reefing that actually did much damage. But I've also never had a lemon peel, either, and these are notorious for nipping at corals and clams.
