Why I find Tangs to be boring.

[fishguy242]

chime in love my vlaminigi's 10" can scoop out by hand let the grandkids touch they don't mind a bit will try to get in my hand any time it's in the tank until i wave them off had 5 years now mated pair from the size of a quarter

 

[StatelineReefer]

I had a sailfin tang (Yes, I know, 75 gallon tank, put away your badges... ) that would 'hover and flutter' as soon as he saw me near the tank. Like a hummingbird or a puppy that gets so excited it can't do anything but wag. Front and center would follow me wherever I went.

He was also the tang that taught me tangs can change color! When he was chilled out and relaxing, he was a deep purple color. Excited or stressed out he would turn the normal yellow, brown, and black that you expect a sailfin to be... very cool, very strange fish. Gave him to a buddy in Elmhurst when I took down the 75 last time. He's still living the good life in a 300 gallon oceanic.

 

[Ardeus]

I also did an exercise in getting into the mind of a fish, but Paul does it much better than me.


I really miss these guys.

For a few weeks I would put cameras around them in the morning and pick them up 7 hours later. Then I would watch the footage and edit until I fell asleep.

Like Paul says, there is something in their eyes.

 

[Stigigemla]

Any fish that can find itself somewhere in a peck order has a personality.

 

[atoll]

Agreed, boring to me and I have had a few of them in my time.
Sure, you can call aggression as personality but that is one part of some tangs personality I can do without hence why I just traded my redline tang bought to have a go at some GHA, job done so off it went. Compared even with the cheapest of fish like a damsel a tang is boring to me, yeah I know damsels can also be aggressive, not all as some would have you believe but they have personality is spades. However, have a pair or small shoal, I have 3 Fiji damsels, and the interaction is something else plus they spawn for me. I have other fish in pairs and numbers as I believe that increases their attraction even more. Most of my fish spawn, how many have spawned tangs in their tanks? Few I would guess. Small fish are cool however each to their own and we like what we like. Some will find tangs interesting like some will find super models interesting.

 

[Paul B]

Like Paul says, there is something in their eyes.

Yes there is , But you have to know your fish and have interacted with them for years.
Another creature with personality is hermit crabs.

Many years ago my best friend and dive partner were diving here in New York with in the City limits where the visibility was probably 36". We were diving for lobsters and for them there is no need to see far because there is no swimming involved. It's just pulling yourself along the huge rocks on the bottom.

You don't need to worry about breaking any coral because there is none. It is just left over boulders from the glacier that receded long before Bernie Sanders was born.

Under those rocks, in holes are lobsters. Anyway, as we were looking for lobsters we found a tire.

(Probably from an Oldsmobile) There are a lot of tires here because they are used on tug boats around the edge to push other boats. In these tires live quite a few lobsters.

In this partially submerged tire was a group of hermit crabs. My avatar was one of them. He is a local New York crab and you can tell by his accent.

The crabs were lining the inside edge of the tire and while we watched, two crabs would take turns going to the center and entering what looked like a wrestling match, although they could have been boxing or doing Kung Fu, Karate, Tai Quan Do or ballet dancing from the theme of the Blue Danube.

I really don't know, but they "fought" for a while until they got tired or one called "Uncle" . ;Bucktooth

Then they would retreat and another pair would come out to "fight".

This went on until we ran out of air as we couldn't move away and we also had money on the matches.

This is my dive partner and I picking out some new, modern dive equipment. I am on the right.


These are what we normally dove for. These are "real" Manly lobsters, not those Sissy, Girly lobsters in the tropics. These guys will teach you how to scream while underwater as their bite will crush clam shells and Snowflake wrists.

Another creature with personality is hermit crabs.

Many years ago my best friend and dive partner were diving here in New York with in the City limits where the visibility was probably 36". We were diving for lobsters and for them there is no need to see far because there is no swimming involved. It's just pulling yourself along the huge rocks on the bottom.

You don't need to worry about breaking any coral because there is none. It is just left over boulders from the glacier that receded long before Bernie Sanders was born.

Under those rocks, in holes are lobsters. Anyway, as we were looking for lobsters we found a tire.

(Probably from an Oldsmobile) There are a lot of tires here because they are used on tug boats around the edge to push other boats. In these tires live quite a few lobsters.

In this partially submerged tire was a group of hermit crabs. My avatar was one of them. He is a local New York crab and you can tell by his accent.

The crabs were lining the inside edge of the tire and while we watched, two crabs would take turns going to the center and entering what looked like a wrestling match, although they could have been boxing or doing Kung Fu, Karate, Tai Quan Do or ballet dancing from the theme of the Blue Danube.

I really don't know, but they "fought" for a while until they got tired or one called "Uncle" .

Then they would retreat and another pair would come out to "fight".

This went on until we ran out of air as we couldn't move away and we also had money on the matches.

This is my dive partner and I picking out some new, modern dive equipment. I am on the right.


These are what we normally dove for. These are "real" Manly lobsters, not those Sissy, Girly lobsters in the tropics. These guys will teach you how to scream while underwater as their bite will crush clam shells and Snowflake wrists.

 

[Marie7]

You must tell us a story of the life of a copper band.

Lollllllllll it was funny

 

[Katrina71]

I love this thread! I honestly had no interest in a Tang ever until @najer posted pics of his scopas. Doe eyes and a long snout. I'm a sucker for her. Now that we are upsizing, a Tang will be possible. It will be the only tang, so I want personality.

 

[najer]

I love this thread! I honestly had no interest in a Tang ever until @najer posted pics of his scopas. Doe eyes and a long snout. I'm a sucker for her. Now that we are upsizing, a Tang will be possible. It will be the only tang, so I want personality.

The girls said hi!

 

[Paul B]

]I feel by far the fish with the most personality are puffers, porcupine fish or this burrfish.

I collected this tiny guy here in New York in the Atlantic. He must have got caught up in the Gulf Stream and ended up here on a Long Island beach in a few feet of water.

He was fingernail size. I brought him home and kept him in a small tank until he grew to a larger tank.

I hand fed him but he would have eaten through the glass if he knew how to. Cute little guy.

After a year he grew to 5" and I gave him to the New York Aquarium where he may still be. That was probably 15 years ago.
I would give him tiny live fiddler crabs and earthworms. His bright green eyes would light up as he "danced" around the crab looking for the right place to bite.
Fantastically interesting and inquisitive fish.

 

[ironman187]

I can't agree with that. My first yellow tang would get excited and swim back and forth quickly across the length of our tank whenever someone would get within 2 feet of the tank. He also did this when the nori ran out. He would also follow you as you moved along the tank. He was never aggressive towards others. My kole tang swims sideways, drifts (like a car) through the rockwork, doesn't care if I'm in front of the tank or not, but the moment anybody else comes towards the tank, she dissapears behind the rockwork. I think standard fish behavior and/or looks often get confused as personality. As such, fish that don't exhibit certain looks or behaviors that are natural in other species are dismissed as "impersonal".

 

[jschultzbass]

]I feel by far the fish with the most personality are puffers, porcupine fish or this burrfish.

I collected this tiny guy here in New York in the Atlantic. He must have got caught up in the Gulf Stream and ended up here on a Long Island beach in a few feet of water.

He was fingernail size. I brought him home and kept him in a small tank until he grew to a larger tank.

I hand fed him but he would have eaten through the glass if he knew how to. Cute little guy.

After a year he grew to 5" and I gave him to the New York Aquarium where he may still be. That was probably 15 years ago.
I would give him tiny live fiddler crabs and earthworms. His bright green eyes would light up as he "danced" around the crab looking for the right place to bite.
Fantastically interesting and inquisitive fish.

I agree puffers are the most personable fish out there. My tank will always have a porcupine puffer!

 

[living_tribunal]

Why I find Tangs Boring.

Many fish such as copperband butterflies, puffers some wrasses etc. have a definite personality and if you look close you can see it in their actions and eyes. Yes their eyes have expressions, not like Angelina Jolie but it's there. ;Smuggrin

Tangs, being schooling fish have no such personality and I find them very dull. I know it's just me but I will explain.
If you do much SCUBA diving you will notice this and if you could read a fishes mind, you would get this from a typical tang on a reef in a school.

Lets say Charlie Tang is swimming off Costa Rica on a Tuesday in October. He is swimming 2" from another tang in a school of a thousand tangs all of the same species.

These are Charlie's thoughts:

Oh No, Bob is leading us again. Why is it always Bob? I mean, l could lead, I am as strong as Bob and if I had a mirror, and thumbs I may find I am better looking,

I know what he is going to do. Yep here we go, heading down for seaweed.

Of course he picked this rock! I hate the seaweed here, it's very gamey and I don't like the way that moray eel always smiles at me.

OK, I will try it......Wait a minute, leaving already...I didn't even get one bite and we are leaving!
Sure. Bob makes the rules.

I am getting closer to the front, soon I will be the leader, I know I can do it.
Wow, look at Shela in front of me. Let me swim alongside her.

Hi Shela, Want to grab a bite? If Bob ever finds something us to eat I mean.

Oh, your not Shela! Sorry. Oh your not even a girl!
Sorry.
No I don't mean to be rude but I don't swim like that.

I wish I had a neck, so I could see who this is next to me. Getting a little to close if you know what I mean.

OK we are turning to the left, oh wait, Now we are going right, now left. I am getting dizzy.

Oh, I see it is time to poop. YUCK.. It would be nice if we would all poop on a turn so I didn't always get it in the face. I mean, Like Really! ;Meh

Wait! I can see the front, Bob is getting tired. I think I can.....Dam Harry got the lead. I hate harry.

I wish someone would collect Harry, then quarantine him in Prizapro.

He's also an Independent and I hear he is a Snowflake. OK, left again, now right, up, now down.

Thank God we are going down. That looks like a nice algae covered rock. Oh Wow!

Down, Down, Harry is doing good.
I like Harry.

Where is Harry? Why are we leaving so fast....And why does that Moray eel have a bigger smile now!

Thats a typical morning for a tang, on a Tuesday.

I endorse this post.

 

[living_tribunal]

I don't think I have another 46 years in me.

My Gansta picture.

Paul, you have no right to tell us how long you'll live. We want you alive forever.

 

[Paul B]

I will work on that. ;Smuggrin

 

[flsalty]

I love tangs. If I want a pet with personality I'll get a snake

 

[Oldsalt]

Every night around 15 minutes before lights go out, my Naso does fast and furious laps around the tank while eliminating the contents of his gut. The Foxface follows in his wake, tasting the stringy mess and spitting it out. Funny to watch

 

[Billldg]

I think a fish's personality is all in the eye of the beholder. I have 3 tangs, a LT Tang, a Gold Rim Tang, and a Tomini tang and they all have their own personality. I find it more fascinating to watch the social structure of the tank, starting at the top with the 3 tangs and working its way down to the clownfish.

 

[Bapeluso]

My blonde naso would beg to differ. Video is of fiance talking to the naso and them kissing each other. He will beg for algae sheets and can eat 2 whole sheets a day by himself. He follows you around the tank and keeps the peace amongst fish. He is the big boy and the guardian of my tank. When I sleep at night, he will remain in the corner closest to my bed making sure I'm ok (even though the bed is across the room).

 

[Jesterrace]

My Yellow Tang was a complete jerk to it's tankmates, so I am not overly fond of them. Not sure I would call it boring, but I would say that Tangs are overrated in many cases. Wrasses definitely have more individual personality IMHO.