The virtues of 2" fishes....

Sk8r · 09/22/2020, 04:15 PM

I keep a 100 g. And right now my fishy complement is all about that size, with fairly massive rock work, lacey rock and full of holes. The key component is a fairly dimwitted blue chromis, first to come out after anything scary, and the rest figure if a shark hasn't eaten him, it must be safe. The YWG has taken a few months to become cheekily confident. The gramma and the clowns are fairly full of curiosity, ditto the little blenny. None of them bother corals, and generally the whole lot each have their hideyholes for the night, and are out and about the rockwoirk at the crack of dawn. This is true of most fishes that max at 2": you get a slice of reef that's active, nobody is big enough to threaten anybody else, and in the real reef 'out there' the little reef dwellers don't venture very far from their hideyholes in the first place. So you have a nice slice of reef where corals can thrive and the little guys are out and about something all day long. If you want low drama and little trouble with a tank, this is not a bad setup.

Zpmada · 09/24/2020, 08:10 AM

Great suggestion thank you. I used to have a clownfish that never left his corner until I recieved a school of 5 blue/green chromis. Now the clownfish ventures out more often and that is even after upgrading to a larger tank.

Sk8r · 09/25/2020, 10:35 AM

Other fish you could add: pearly jawfish, IF you have a deep-ish sandbed; or any of the skinny small shrimp gobies---but take my heartfelt advice and leave OUT the shrimp, which will grow larger, and possibly kill the shrimp goby and others: they are rotten-hard to catch, and may require a lot of rock removal. A mandarin or scooter ONLY if you have a thriving sump-fuge crawling with pods and at least a 50 gallon display. Otherwise they will starve to death. One; not a pair. For pairs, look to much larger tank with a huge lot of rock.

Thornbreaker · 09/28/2020, 11:26 AM

My gramma does nothing but hide under a rock, which was recently filled in, so she just hides flat against a new rock where everyone can see her now.

Of course I have a 8" foxface thats pretty peaceful, but noticeably larger, and a male anthias that likes to be bossy.

At feeding time, everyone is on the same team tho and suddenly no one is scared of me next to the glass.

Sent from my SM-G986U1 using Tapatalk

Sk8r · 09/28/2020, 11:56 AM

Grammas can be among the shyest esp. given a rabbit cruising the area, ditto a bossy anthias.

09/22/2020, 04:15 PM	#1
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	The virtues of 2" fishes.... I keep a 100 g. And right now my fishy complement is all about that size, with fairly massive rock work, lacey rock and full of holes. The key component is a fairly dimwitted blue chromis, first to come out after anything scary, and the rest figure if a shark hasn't eaten him, it must be safe. The YWG has taken a few months to become cheekily confident. The gramma and the clowns are fairly full of curiosity, ditto the little blenny. None of them bother corals, and generally the whole lot each have their hideyholes for the night, and are out and about the rockwoirk at the crack of dawn. This is true of most fishes that max at 2": you get a slice of reef that's active, nobody is big enough to threaten anybody else, and in the real reef 'out there' the little reef dwellers don't venture very far from their hideyholes in the first place. So you have a nice slice of reef where corals can thrive and the little guys are out and about something all day long. If you want low drama and little trouble with a tank, this is not a bad setup. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

09/25/2020, 10:35 AM	#3
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	Other fish you could add: pearly jawfish, IF you have a deep-ish sandbed; or any of the skinny small shrimp gobies---but take my heartfelt advice and leave OUT the shrimp, which will grow larger, and possibly kill the shrimp goby and others: they are rotten-hard to catch, and may require a lot of rock removal. A mandarin or scooter ONLY if you have a thriving sump-fuge crawling with pods and at least a 50 gallon display. Otherwise they will starve to death. One; not a pair. For pairs, look to much larger tank with a huge lot of rock. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

09/28/2020, 11:26 AM	#4
Thornbreaker Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Posts: 334	My gramma does nothing but hide under a rock, which was recently filled in, so she just hides flat against a new rock where everyone can see her now. Of course I have a 8" foxface thats pretty peaceful, but noticeably larger, and a male anthias that likes to be bossy. At feeding time, everyone is on the same team tho and suddenly no one is scared of me next to the glass. Sent from my SM-G986U1 using Tapatalk __________________ SC Aquariums - 150 Gallon 5'x2'x2'; Trigger Elite 36 Sump; Mars Aqua Lights 150 lbs reefcleaner rock, SCA 302 Skimmer Current Stock: Foxface lo, 2 clowns, royal gramma, 2 spot bristletooth tang, fir

09/28/2020, 11:56 AM	#5
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	Grammas can be among the shyest esp. given a rabbit cruising the area, ditto a bossy anthias. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

09/24/2020, 08:10 AM	#2
Zpmada Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Phillipsburg, NJ Posts: 95	Great suggestion thank you. I used to have a clownfish that never left his corner until I recieved a school of 5 blue/green chromis. Now the clownfish ventures out more often and that is even after upgrading to a larger tank.