I'm thinking about adding a colder temperature fish and want to keep my tank around 75F. Will the Moorish Idol be able to handle this? on LA it says 78-80F for the Moorish Idol. All of my other fish LA says 72-78.
Keeping The Mysterious Moorish Idol
- Thread starter 4FordFamily
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OP
OP
4FordFamily
Tang, Angel, and Wrasse Nerd!
Well, I’ve not tried it but I saw Moorish Idols in Cabo San Lucas this weekend and this time of year there the average temp is 72 degrees. They seemed happy to me!
They’re pretty common there. It’s 72-73 degrees average from January through June.
jason g
Well-Known Member
I feed my Idol Nori, Reef Nutrition Mysis plus he picks at my rocks all day. His streamer fin has also grown since I purchased it.
It also hangs out with my Foxface all day. They're buddies I guess.
It also hangs out with my Foxface all day. They're buddies I guess.
OP
OP
4FordFamily
Tang, Angel, and Wrasse Nerd!
That’s a chunky idol! Well-done!I feed my Idol Nori, Reef Nutrition Mysis plus he picks at my rocks all day. His streamer fin has also grown since I purchased it.
It also hangs out with my Foxface all day. They're buddies I guess.
i had a moorish idol for a year and it did very well for me. i feed it 3 times a day with sea veggies and larrys fish frenzy. my tank was a 125 gallon 6 foot long tank. i felt that the tank was too small and i sold it to a guy with a 700 gallon tank. i loved that fish but for its long term health it was what i had to do. i feel they need very large tanks to thrive.
I used 10g qts for mine during TTM, but ammonia control was a challenge, even with seeded sponge filters (thrown away after each transfer). Once he finished TTM and I put him in a 20g long, it was better.
tammieh
Active Member
Thank you! I have an extra Red Sea 130d that I thought I could use for QT, but it seems so small compared to the final tank size.
What would you guys recommend or advise against for tank mates?
I would think nippers like triggers and puffers would be out completely. I was thinking of a lot of smaller fish - maybe some reef-safe wrasses, a pair of clowns that I already own, a pearlscale butterfly (already own), blennies, gobies and the like. As for bigger fish, maybe a hippo tang. I know a lot of you go all out with lots of different cool big fish which is so awesome, but I just love watching the little guys.
my experience with these fish is that bigger is always better. these are open water swimmers that require a lot of swimming space. i do not like to qt these fish . i like to buy from a dealer who has qt them already and has them eating with no signs of starving. most may disagree with this. i would not add to a tank with larger tank mates already established. they can be quite shy at first.
Agreed, I bought mine from LA Divers Den and put it straight into the display. Got a little stress from the bigger the Tangs in the tank overall though settled in great.
Earl Karl
Well-Known Member
All the moorish idols I have kept ignored pellets, red nori and fresh mussels, and spits out live blackworms. However, they all LOVE silversides and vitamin soaked brine and mysis shrimp. And I know I'm keeping Moorish Idols lol.
People suggesting feeding 3-4 times a day is wrong IME. It's not only about frequency, it's about the amount of food it gets. 10 feedings isn't gonna do anything if you're trying to feed enough to keep phosphates at 0.03. That's why most live only a fraction of what I'm keeping most of the time. Feeding frequency varies, from 6-10 times a day, but my MI eats more than a 1/4 lbs of food a day. I'm able to keep it at 0.1-0.2 phosphates with this feeding, acros love it.
Also, they don't need super big tanks, although it does help with their skittishness. You can keep them in 75 gallons, they are not as active swimmers nor get big as your popular tangs, not even the smaller tomini tang. However, keeping it in such size tank will require minimalistic rock structure due to their extreme skittishness. One spook and they will go crashing into the rocks. They handle stress pretty well IME (especially with transport), but when it comes to infections and sickness, that's where they struggle. One cut from the rocks and you might as well kiss that fish goodbye. Otherwise, 120 gallons and up (bigger is definitely better) is sufficient.
I've kept my second MI (my longest living one) in a 20 gallon while in qt (found better success in trying to get them to feed in smaller tanks, never medicated the qt though, just trying to get him to eat), moved it 40 gallon for its first 4 years with me, then it spend its other half with me in a 90. I gave it to a friend who has a 700 due to college, it is 11 years old now. And also dying. Lived a good life at least. His other MI friends are 5-8 years old.
People suggesting feeding 3-4 times a day is wrong IME. It's not only about frequency, it's about the amount of food it gets. 10 feedings isn't gonna do anything if you're trying to feed enough to keep phosphates at 0.03. That's why most live only a fraction of what I'm keeping most of the time. Feeding frequency varies, from 6-10 times a day, but my MI eats more than a 1/4 lbs of food a day. I'm able to keep it at 0.1-0.2 phosphates with this feeding, acros love it.
Also, they don't need super big tanks, although it does help with their skittishness. You can keep them in 75 gallons, they are not as active swimmers nor get big as your popular tangs, not even the smaller tomini tang. However, keeping it in such size tank will require minimalistic rock structure due to their extreme skittishness. One spook and they will go crashing into the rocks. They handle stress pretty well IME (especially with transport), but when it comes to infections and sickness, that's where they struggle. One cut from the rocks and you might as well kiss that fish goodbye. Otherwise, 120 gallons and up (bigger is definitely better) is sufficient.
I've kept my second MI (my longest living one) in a 20 gallon while in qt (found better success in trying to get them to feed in smaller tanks, never medicated the qt though, just trying to get him to eat), moved it 40 gallon for its first 4 years with me, then it spend its other half with me in a 90. I gave it to a friend who has a 700 due to college, it is 11 years old now. And also dying. Lived a good life at least. His other MI friends are 5-8 years old.
n21benson
Active Member
My 1 year old moorish idol. She eat nori, pellet, shrimp... and fruits like mango, banana...
What a beautiful fish!
Been researching getting one. Questions I have.
1.) Would like to quarantine, is there a specific treatment for these that they respond best too, like chloroquine phosphate, copper or prazi?
2.) Going for an SPS dom tank and a little worried. I'm guessing it's just keep it fat and happy and hope it doesn't take a liking to SPS?
1.) Would like to quarantine, is there a specific treatment for these that they respond best too, like chloroquine phosphate, copper or prazi?
2.) Going for an SPS dom tank and a little worried. I'm guessing it's just keep it fat and happy and hope it doesn't take a liking to SPS?
OP
OP
4FordFamily
Tang, Angel, and Wrasse Nerd!
Hello there, happy to help!
1) Honestly, I've not found idols to be sensitive to medications. Sensitive to literally everything else. I will even go as far as to say I have better luck in quarantine than I've had once in the display tank. I think this is consequence of dietary changes/stress and things I outlined in this article. Copper is probably easiest.
2) Well, that's obviously a risk. They really enjoy sponges, and so they're known to pick at the reef looking for those. They are hit and miss with coral, but I've known many to nip. For me, I cannot keep SPS alive. Give me an expert level fish I am fine, so I don't have direct experience with this pairing but it does concern me a bit. SPS is an expensive snack, I am not sure I'd take that risk if it were me.
I hope you found this helpful,
Jason
ReefHog
Well-Known Member
I’ve had mine for about 8 months. Two weeks in QT with chloroquine phosphate then six weeks in observation with black molly. He did fine the whole time in QT but did get a little finicky with food for first few weeks but never went hungry. I got him to eat clam from tweezers along with mysis and black worms in QT. He now eats everything. He constantly picks at walls for algae. I feed three times a day as they have a high metabolism. I feed mid jersey pet supply sponge diet along with clam, mysis, blackworms, LRS, pellets and nori. As for corals, he doesn’t touch anything I have. LPS softies and a few SPS. My recommendation would be to buy one locally and make sure he’s eating before you buy. Then have a good variety of food available.
Good advice! Do you have an automatic feeder to feed 3 times a day or are you working from home? Just curious as I'm getting one soon and wonder how people feed these guys when away for work during the day.
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