What would you stock it with?

[revhtree]

If i had a tank that size I would get a unicorn tang, just to say I have one lol.
And I would epoxy my rock together and get a zebra eel

Oooh yes love that tang!

 

[GHsaltie]

Not a large fish but I personally think a yellow candy hogfish would look nice, not certain how it would do with wrasses. Maybe a trio of squareback anthias? And of course a pair of red mandarins would be awesome, and not because it's my favorite fish .

 

[Dave Cureton]

Here's my list:
Borbonius Anthias
Desjardini Sailfin
Bellus Angel Trio
Regal Angel
Flame Angel
Magnificent FoxFace
A dozen or so Bartlett and/or Dispar Anthias
Clownfish pair/Anenome of your choice
Mandarin pair
Oh an put the timid critters in first.

Man I want a bigger tank!

 

[evolved]

a yellow candy hogfish would look nice, not certain how it would do with wrasses

Not good; don't do that.

 

[Pola0502ds]

You like wrasse, save some money and buy a feminus. My dream fish!

 

[Salty1962]

Regal Angel, Moorish Idol, Orange Shoulder Tang, Blue Throat and Crosshatch Triggers and of course an ample dose of wrasses

 

[Salty1962]

So would you add the tangs first and together before any other fish?

I would add Tangs last myself.

 

[GHsaltie]

Not good; don't do that.

Good to know for future reference thank you! I've heard that the yellow candy hogs are more peaceful for a hogfish but I didn't know if they are calm enough to live with wrasses.

 

[Chriscrna]

7 female and 1 male ventralis

 

[Mini Coop]

I want blue throat trigger pair so bad - I would certainly recommend because I love them! I would suggest a pair - male alone can be super shy! But you probably already know that

 

[Maritimer]

Hmmm . . . Let's let the brain spin a little, and open up the wishlist valve . . .

Here's (kinda) what I've done and am dreaming of doing, into the future, in a tank that's currently 65 gallons and will be rehomed into something about half the size of yours.

I began with mild, mellow fish -

A small group of zebra-bar dartfish, soft and peaceful green with intricate salmon bars, a long slender arrow high in the water column.
A pair of firefish, a little lower in the water and with that entertaining twitch of the dorsal.
A pair of tiny "percocellaris" clownfish (I have a granddaughter, m'kay?)
A brace of flasher wrasse (Carpenters and Linespot), orangy-red, zooming through the tank above the rocks.
A tailspot blenny (lost to ich, but would/will have another any day of the week!)
A yellowline goby, a brilliant cleaner
A pair of yellow watchman gobies; yellow male and grey female. Wish they actually _liked_ one another!
A blackray shrimp goby. Wish at least one of the three would pair up with the pistol shrimp!

Then a little bigger and feistier -

A trio of azure damsels provide spots of sparkling blue and yellow. By and large, they keep their feisting and fighting among themselves.
A midas blenny lends his rich yellow color and sinuous undulation to the levels just below the surface.
More yellow - and a dash of magenta - are provided by a shy royal gramma, who I hope to eventually pair / harem up with a couple more.
Fairy wrasses; larger than the flashers, they offer a range of colors and displays, from the pumpkin and cerulean of the orange-back to the Christmas colors of a Bali exquisite. (I lost a Naoko's and a pintail to jumping, but would add them again - and would love a Labout's wrasse as well.)
If you're up for a bit of risk, dwarf angelfish. I have a coral beauty and a flame - the flame chases the beauty a bit, and has been spotted nipping at corals which are in poor health. (Given the dedication of my tank, "Zoey's Reef", Angels are an important part of the community, in addition to being beautiful additions!) I would love to try a multibar again, as I had one that I loved, but didn't make it through QT.
A small kole tang, nibbling on the rockwork. She gives algae a hard time, but doesn't really do much damage to it.
A starry blenny gives the algae as much grief as the kole, but the kole despises the starry.
A blue-throat triggerfish. This guy was kind of unplanned, and part of the impetus to upgrade. I think he's stressed in my smaller tank, and has taken on a yellow-brown wash that makes him look female. (Still has a 5:00 shadow, though!)
A trio of Bartlett's anthias provide a hard-to-believe combination of violet-pink and clear yellow, and a feisty display of social hierarchy.

Believe it or not, all of those fish are currently milling about in my tank! (I think I have a clue why my corals might be struggling...)

Once everyone's safely in the 220, I'd like to add a few more fish.

The electric yellow-black-blue-white banding of a regal angelfish. (Might have to move some of my zoanthids to some sort of refuge if I want to keep 'em...)
The impossible, hurt-your-eyes greens, blues, oranges and pinks of a Quoy's parrotfish. (A parrotfish? In a _reef_ tank?! From what I'm given to understand, they're pretty darned safe.)
The yellow and patterned black of a one-spot foxface.
The stately elegance of a pair of Banggai cardinalfish.
The peek-a-boo of green clown gobies.
The cerulean blues and brilliant yellow of a powderblue tang.
The dark drama and flaming elegance of an achilles tang.

And inverts, 'cause it's a reef tank!

Tuxedo urchins.
Cleaner, peppermint and blood shrimp. (I think the trigger may have taken out the sexy shrimp . . . )
Rock-flower and maxi-mini carpet anemones.
Feather dusters, arranged in a "garden".
Emerald and hermit crabs.
Nerite, Cerith, Astraea, Trochus, Stomatella, Colonista and Ninja-star snails; sand-tiger conchs.
Serpent and brittle stars - and Asterina.
A pink and black sea cucumber, and a tiny yellow one.
Copepods, isopods, amphipods.
Bristle worms and spaghetti worms.

And maybe ... some corals?

It's almost as though I think of things like this ... all day long ... when I'm supposed to be doing other things . . .

~Bruce

 

[Maritimer]

I want blue throat trigger pair so bad - I would certainly recommend because I love them! I would suggest a pair - male alone can be super shy! But you probably already know that

Eureka moment?! My male has been "dressing like a female" since a few weeks after I got him. Wonder if he needs a girlfriend . . .

~Bruce

 

[Mini Coop]

Eureka moment?! My male has been "dressing like a female" since a few weeks after I got him. Wonder if he needs a girlfriend . . .

~Bruce

Before the dreaded ich took mine, he hid in a rock all the time and only came out to eat. They are much more active as a pair.

 

[DanConnor]

I like lots of small fish. In my 200 I have 5 resplendent anthias with a harem of 5 orchid dottyback and they look great.

 

[scardall]

Agreed! Definitely want a Yellow, Blonde Naso, and Achilles. Also a couple other good cleaning tangs.

Tamini Tang-bristle tooth tang

 

[saltyhog]

Hmmm. Since you said you wanted some reef safe angels and I'm spending your money, I'm thinking I'd start with a pair of Genicanthus personatus.

Seriously.

For angels....Pair of G. watanabei and I might get frisky and try a Majestic and a Regal.

Tangs....Purple, Naso, Orange shoulder, Dussumieri, Unicorn, white tail bristle tooth

Wrasses.....A. femininus...gotta have one! Leopards.....Potter's, Kuiter's. Fairies....Lineatus, Isosceles, Labout's, Flame, Rhomboid, Exquisite and and Earle's if the budget allows. Flashers....attenuatus, red tail, yellow fin, line spot and an eight line if evolved/eatbreakfast think it would work. Halichoeres....Ear Muff, Vroliks, Biocellatus, Chrysus, radiant

Butterflies....Chelmon marginalis, group of 4 pyramid butterflies

 

[d-man]

Easy....

G. Personatus
Bandit angel
Gem tang
Naso
Purple tang
Yellow tang
Fowleri tang
9 Hawaiian ventralis anthias
Lineatus
Earls
Rhomboid
Flame
Pintail
Feminius
Diamond tail
And about 10 misc gobies/grammas/blennies/dottybacks


Plus all easily obtainable given funds obviously

 

[alanbetiger]

Forgot about a classic that most everyone loves. RBTA with a pair of clownish. Simple, but personally I don't think a reef tank is complete without them

 

[eatbreakfast]

Nothing makes a reef tank look like a real reef more than a large group of anthias. Resist the urge to do a handful of a few species and get a larger group of just one or two species. Bartletts and squamipinnis can be a bit feisty with each other. Evansi are one of my favorites for a large group of 12+.

Purple tilefish are great for a bright purple fish.

Any flashers will work

For fairy wrasses: solorensis, exquisite, isoscoles, rhomboidalis, linneatus, Bali lubbocki are all good choices.

Some good Halichoeres species include: chrysus, iridis, leucurus, melasmapomus, richmondi.

Some challenging, but rewarding wrasses include the most of the leopards, red tailed tamarin, china wrasse, femininus wrasse, and Anampses twistii. Pencil wrasse species are brightly colored and peaceful.

A pair of swallowtail angels are stunning.

I don't think any tank is complete without a flame hawk, longnose hawk, or a starry blenny.

 

[evolved]

I've heard that the yellow candy hogs are more peaceful for a hogfish

Eh, that still does not necessarily mean much.
In general, know that: Bodianus = jerk