[Mattfish]

Finally did some planning. Right now, we have:

• Green Chromis - 3
• 6 line Wrasse - 1
• False Clowns - 2
• Indian Ocean Sailfin Tang - 1
• Banggai Cardinalfish - 1
• Firefish - 3

We're looking now towards the long term - colorful, larger fish and a few smaller interesting ones. Here's our list to whittle down from since we can't have everything - perhaps one or two from each group/type. The ones I'm really hooked on at the moment are in bold & italics. And yes, the pan is reef - corals, clams, etc. Comments and advice requested!:

FamilyNameLatin NameSeabassChalk BassSerranus TortugarumAnthiasThreadfi n Anthias - MaleNemanthias CarberryiAnthiasBicolor AnthiasPseudanthias BicolorAnthiasSquarespot Anthias - MalePseudanthias PleurotaeniaAnthiasLyreta il Anthias - FemalePseudanthias SquamipinnisGrammaBrazili an GrammaGramma BrasiliensisJawfishBluesp otted JawfishOpistognathus RosenblattiButterflyfishB luestripe ButterflyfishChaetodon FrembillButterflyfishTink er's ButterflyfishChaetodon TinkeriButterflyfishCoppe rbanded ButterflyfishChelmon RostratusBannerfishHumphe ad BannerfishHeniochus VariusAngelfishIndian Yellowtail AngelfishApolemychthys XanthurusAngelfishGolden AgelfishCentropyge AurantiaAngelfishCoral BeautyCentropyge BispinosaAngelfishEibl's AngelfishCentropyge EibliAngelfishFlame AngelfishCentropyge LoriculaAngelfishBluespot ted AngelfishChaetodontoplus CaeruleopunctatusAngelfis hBlackspot Angelfish - MaleGenicanthus MelanospilosWrasseBluespo tted WrasseAnampses CaeruleopunctatusWrasseLo ngfin Fairy WrasseCirrhilabrus RubriventralisWrasseScott 's Fairy WrasseCirrhilabrus ScottorumWrasseRedheaded Fairy Wrasse - MaleCirrhilabrus SolorensisWrassePotter's Leopard WrasseMacropharyngodon GeoffroyiWrasseLeopard WrasseMacropharyngodon meleagrisWrasseCarpenter' s Flasher WrasseParacheilinus CarpenteriWrasseFilamente d Flasher WrasseParacheilinus FilamentosusWrasseEightli ne Flasher WrasseParacheilinus OctotaeniaBlennyMidas BlennyEcsenius MidasBlennyYellowtail Fang BlennyMelacanthus AtrodorsalisGobyRainford' s GobyAnmblygobius RainfordiGobyBlackfinned Shrimp GobyCryptocentrus PavoninoidesGobySharknose GobyGobiosoma EvelynaeGobyDecorated GobyIstigobius DecoratusGoby Blackray Shrimp GobyStonogobius NematodesDartfishCurious WormfishGunnelichtys CuriosusDartfishZebra Dart GobyPtereleotris ZebraSurgeonfishAchilles SurgeonfishAcanthurus AchillesSurgeonfishAtlant ic Blue TangAcanthurus CoeruleusSurgeonfishPowde r Brown SurgeonfishAcanthurus JaponicusSurgeonfishPowde r Blue SurgeonfishAcanthurus LeucosternonSurgeonfishOr angeshoulder SurgeonfishAcanthurus OlivaceusSurgeonfishChoco late SurgeonfishAcanthurus PyroferusSurgeonfishBlack SurgeonfishCtenochaetus HawaiiensisSurgeonfishOra ngespine UnicornfishNaso LituratusSurgeonfishPurpl e TangZebrasoma XanthurumTriggerfishPinkt ail TriggerfishMelichthys ViduaTriggerfishSargassum TriggerfishXanthichthys Ringens
I wanted to get a Flame Scallop but was warned off that today....

Thanks for your thoughts!

[Mattfish]

OK - Sorry - here's a better formatted version:

Finally did some planning. Right now, we have:

• Green Chromis - 3
• 6 line Wrasse - 1
• False Clowns - 2
• Indian Ocean Sailfin Tang - 1
• Banggai Cardinalfish - 1
• Firefish - 3

We're looking now towards the long term - colorful, larger fish and a few smaller interesting ones. Here's our list to whittle down from since we can't have everything - perhaps one or two from each group/type. The ones I'm really hooked on at the moment are in bold & italics. And yes, the pan is reef - corals, clams, etc. Comments and advice requested!:

Name - Family - Latin Name
Chalk Bass - Seabass - Serranus Tortugarum
Threadfin Anthias - Male - Anthias - Nemanthias Carberryi
Bicolor Anthias - Anthias - Pseudanthias Bicolor
Squarespot Anthias - Male - Anthias - Pseudanthias Pleurotaenia
Lyretail Anthias - Female - Anthias - Pseudanthias Squamipinnis
Brazilian Gramma - Gramma - Gramma Brasiliensis
Bluespotted Jawfish - Jawfish - Opistognathus Rosenblatti
Bluestripe Butterflyfish - Butterflyfish - Chaetodon Frembill
Tinker's Butterflyfish - Butterflyfish - Chaetodon Tinkeri
Copperbanded Butterflyfish - Butterflyfish - Chelmon Rostratus
Humphead Bannerfish - Bannerfish - Heniochus Varius
Indian Yellowtail Angelfish - Angelfish - Apolemychthys Xanthurus
Golden Agelfish - Angelfish - Centropyge Aurantia
Coral Beauty - Angelfish - Centropyge Bispinosa
Eibl's Angelfish - Angelfish - Centropyge Eibli
Flame Angelfish - Angelfish - Centropyge Loricula
Bluespotted Angelfish - Angelfish - Chaetodontoplus Caeruleopunctatus
Blackspot Angelfish - Male - Angelfish - Genicanthus Melanospilos
Bluespotted Wrasse - Wrasse - Anampses Caeruleopunctatus
Longfin Fairy Wrasse - Wrasse - Cirrhilabrus Rubriventralis
Scott's Fairy Wrasse - Wrasse - Cirrhilabrus Scottorum
Redheaded Fairy Wrasse - Male - Wrasse - Cirrhilabrus Solorensis
Potter's Leopard Wrasse - Wrasse - Macropharyngodon Geoffroyi
Leopard Wrasse - Wrasse - Macropharyngodon meleagris
Carpenter's Flasher Wrasse - Wrasse - Paracheilinus Carpenteri
Filamented Flasher Wrasse - Wrasse - Paracheilinus Filamentosus
Eightline Flasher Wrasse - Wrasse - Paracheilinus Octotaenia
Midas Blenny - Blenny - Ecsenius Midas
Yellowtail Fang Blenny - Blenny - Melacanthus Atrodorsalis
Rainford's Goby - Goby - Anmblygobius Rainfordi
Blackfinned Shrimp Goby - Goby - Cryptocentrus Pavoninoides
Sharknose Goby - Goby - Gobiosoma Evelynae
Decorated Goby - Goby - Istigobius Decoratus
Blackray Shrimp Goby - Goby - Stonogobius Nematodes
Curious Wormfish - Dartfish - Gunnelichtys Curiosus
Zebra Dart Goby - Dartfish - Ptereleotris Zebra
Achilles Surgeonfish - Surgeonfish - Acanthurus Achilles
Atlantic Blue Tang - Surgeonfish - Acanthurus Coeruleus
Powder Brown Surgeonfish - Surgeonfish - Acanthurus Japonicus
Powder Blue Surgeonfish - Surgeonfish - Acanthurus Leucosternon
Orangeshoulder Surgeonfish - Surgeonfish - Acanthurus Olivaceus
Chocolate Surgeonfish - Surgeonfish - Acanthurus Pyroferus
Black Surgeonfish - Surgeonfish - Ctenochaetus Hawaiiensis
Orangespine Unicornfish - Surgeonfish - Naso Lituratus
Purple Tang - Surgeonfish - Zebrasoma Xanthurum
Pinktail Triggerfish - Triggerfish - Melichthys Vidua
Sargassum Triggerfish - Triggerfish - Xanthichthys Ringens


I wanted to get a Flame Scallop but was warned off that today....

Thanks for your thoughts!

[glampka]

Hi Mike,
Copperbands are 1 of my favorite fish. They can be very finnicky eaters though & you might have to give them live food.
Coral beauty's are nice but as they get older they lose their color. The Flame Angel has far better color.

[dragonboy4578]

i love the flame angles, but my favorite are the potters angles.

[mtfabel]

Achilles and powder blue tangs have a poor survival rate in captivity. They both require perfect water and lots of flow. And even with providing both of those it is still hit and miss.

[Mattfish]

With ya on the Copperband - if they're difficult, we'll have to wait til we're a little smarter and can handle it - maybe one of our last additions.

If the Coral Beauty loses it's color then that kinda negates my keeping them on the list - but we had the bad experience with the one Flame Angelfish, and I do have to say, I like the Potter's over the Flame - the color variety seems prettier, but I'll have to read more on temperament and care.

If the Achilles Tang and Powder Bule Tang are difficult, then maybe the Atlantic Blue, Orangeshoulder or Chocolate Tangs...

This is the fun part of all this - checking it out. Of course, last night my wife truens to me and says, maybe we should have a bigger tank. I pointed out that as much as we'd like one, it'd be nice to have somewhere to sleep in the house, and that the baby should have to learn English and Thai before learning to speak fish....

[blind1993]

still the coral beauty is a very good fish and is hardy

[mtfabel]

The Atlantic Blue falls into that same category with the Achilles and Powder Blue. Potters angels needs very productive LR to survive. Some can be trained to eat prepared food but for the most part they prefer live foods. Plus they have been known to eat coral polyps. Not trying to ruin your day but these are all fish I have wanted at some time or another to find out the same thing Im telling you(especially the potters).

[Mattfish]

Well, sure - nothing like blowing my dream. Kust kidding - I appreciate the advice - I'd rather ask than be unpleasantly surprised.

This forum's the first place on any subject where people express their opinions without snide comments or holier-than-thou attitudes, so the help is really appreciated!

We have added lot's o' swimmy things in the last few days, so it's time to stop and monitor and be careful. We were out today and found a Rainford's Goby - beautiful little thing, who's now home and happy. But no more for a while. Water changes, monitoring, etc.

[mtfabel]

Im not saying that you shouldnt own these fish. Just that if you attempt to have one then your water quality has to be perfect and you personally have to be able to accept the fact that its possible it may not survive. Its not impossible to keep these. They are just a bit more delicate than most.

[Mattfish]

You hit the nail on the head - more difficult fish take greater care, and we know we're not yet ready - and if we decide we get to that point, we'd have to be prepared. After losing a few fish already, I now want to do all the right stuff - water quality and monitoring, generator backup, RO?DI water, etc, and make these habits and part of the process before getting into difficult fish, clams, coral, etc. It's both the discipline and the personal responsibility to do it right.

Also, as a lesson for the kid as he gets older.

We now have enough colorful "swimmy things" to be content to watch the tank mature, let the coralline algae grow, keep records, etc and grow into more difficult challenges when we have morre experience.

The list will probably keep changing anyway. And some of the more difficult ones like maybe a Potter's may make it later on.

[mtfabel]

The potters angel is one of the few fish that I still need to aquire. I am just waiting to find one that will accept prepared foods. I cant afford to get one that is gonna have my corals for a buffet. I have seen several at my LFS and I would go in several times a week to see if it was eating prepared food yet or not. End result was none of them did and I didnt buy them.

[e_baer]

well, a copperband is a very nice fish, but as mentioned before, they are difficult to take care of. also, thye are prone to nip at corals. I like to get all my info from Aquarium Fish: Tropical Freshwater Fish and Saltwater Fish for Home Aquariums they have some of the most basic info you need to know about a lot of fish. so, before getting any fihs, look here for the basic info!

[Mattfish]

Someone had clued me in to that site also - great information, although interestingly, they don't list every fish - it seems that they carry a lot of species, but for example, the didn't have the Brazilian Gramma. No big deal, just surprising they don't have everything.

But I do find conflicting advice - the Marine Fishes book which I use now for the bigger picture has good info, and the few lfs' around I go to have good advice, but I honestly find the best advice so far for me is what I read and hear on RB. Generic knowledge on liveaquaria.com, and the books is good, but no substitute for real experience from people who have tried things.

FWIW, I'm a pilot also - single and multi-engine instrument rated. In flying, no one admits mistakes. People make plenty of them (I used to manage the world's largest non-profit flying club, so we used to see all kinds of ridiculous stuff), but no one admits it.

With fish, everyone seems much more in tune with trying to understand what went wrong when something does, and letting everyone share from that experience. Pretty valuable.

[mtfabel]

Well I feel that if you are going to be in this hobby you have to have a pssion for marine life and compassion for the creatures you put in your tank. So as a general rule people on here are giving advice based on there experiences so that everyone else can provide a better quality of life for their fishy family.

[Mattfish]

Speaking of passion for marine life, I'm so in need of a vacation, that we just found a cheap way to get to Cancun - I plan on splitting my time evenly between umbrella drinks delivered to my waiting hands, and lots of scuba diving. I got my nitrox a few years back, and I plan to spend several long dives nearly lying on the sea floor watching my next few aquarium choices in their natural habitat, auditioning for my personal pleasure. If that isn't dedication to marine life in all of it's forms, then I don't know what is.

Unless you'd call it a totally self-serving, incredibly lazy indulgence. My wife called it that (although she did it in Thai, and in truth, I'm not sure if that was an exact translation), but on the other hand, she's naturally decided I was right and will undoubtedly find new ways to indulge herself as well....

[Joan]

I logged onto reef builders to find out a little more about the atlantic blue tang, but I came across this wish list after the fact that i just recently took back my ABT. Just want to let you know they need alot of space! It would not leave my two clowns alone constantly rubbing against until it stressed my littlest clown to it's death. Then the LFS said it was okay to get another tang but different species so I got a sailfin, well needless to say the ABT started nipping so I had to evict him. Just to let you know.

[Mattfish]

Thanks Joan - did a little (very little) looking at my books on vacation, and may decide to stay away from the ABT.... several others on the list that may take precedence..... and only so much room in the tank.