Dynamics of multiple Pomacentridae Damsels in one tank?

[Enad]

Hi all,

Over the years, I've grown fond of Damselfish. Their small size and their movement is very attractive to me and I've been considering adding more to my tank but I wanted to discuss the dynamics of keeping multiple Damsels in one tank as I know they can be aggressive.

To start, I have a matured 60g Peninsula with a lot of rock work and various sized coral colonies. I'd be looking to ideally mix 3-5 different Pomacentridae Damsels together, so let's say 2 Tracey's Damsels and 1 Orangetail Blue Damselfish for example. I would add all these new fish at the same time.

I also already have 1 Blue Sapphire Damsel who has been in the tank for 2 years. Ideally, I would like to NOT remove her, but I will if necessary.

The types of Damsels I'd be looking at would likely be as follows:
-Orangetail Blue Damselfish
-Black Cap Damselfish
-Ternate Damselfish
-Tracey's Damselfish
-Starki Damselfish(unless it's truly too aggro)

A few basic questions regarding this
1. Are success rates higher with the same TYPE of Damsel, even within the same family? Aka a pack of 3 or 5 Ternates will do better than a combined group
2. How detrimental would it be to keep the existing Sapphire Damsel in the tank vs starting fresh with a new pack of Damsels?
3. The Starki Damsel specifically seems to get a negative reputation for being aggressive against it's own kind, does this apply to other varieties such as Black Cap Damsel or Ternate Damsels? Could a pair of Starki's work if introduced at the same time?


I'm sure other questions will come up as the discussion goes on but I'm really just looking for some general wisdom on this subject.

Any help would be appreciated!

 

[Enad]

Bumping

 

[promotheus2070]

Bump

 

[Chemjab]

Hi all,

Over the years, I've grown fond of Damselfish. Their small size and their movement is very attractive to me and I've been considering adding more to my tank but I wanted to discuss the dynamics of keeping multiple Damsels in one tank as I know they can be aggressive.

To start, I have a matured 60g Peninsula with a lot of rock work and various sized coral colonies. I'd be looking to ideally mix 3-5 different Pomacentridae Damsels together, so let's say 2 Tracey's Damsels and 1 Orangetail Blue Damselfish for example. I would add all these new fish at the same time.

I also already have 1 Blue Sapphire Damsel who has been in the tank for 2 years. Ideally, I would like to NOT remove her, but I will if necessary.

The types of Damsels I'd be looking at would likely be as follows:
-Orangetail Blue Damselfish
-Black Cap Damselfish
-Ternate Damselfish
-Tracey's Damselfish
-Starki Damselfish(unless it's truly too aggro)

A few basic questions regarding this
1. Are success rates higher with the same TYPE of Damsel, even within the same family? Aka a pack of 3 or 5 Ternates will do better than a combined group
2. How detrimental would it be to keep the existing Sapphire Damsel in the tank vs starting fresh with a new pack of Damsels?
3. The Starki Damsel specifically seems to get a negative reputation for being aggressive against it's own kind, does this apply to other varieties such as Black Cap Damsel or Ternate Damsels? Could a pair of Starki's work if introduced at the same time?


I'm sure other questions will come up as the discussion goes on but I'm really just looking for some general wisdom on this subject.

Any help would be appreciated!

I would like to know this too.

 

[Jasonak]

I have a mix of around 10-12 in my tank, I would have to go watch the tank for awhile to know for sure how many were in there. Been many years since I added them. They are mix of sapphire, azure, yellow tail and then there are two humbugs. I also have 6 clowns which are technically a damsel but not counting those. My tank is 330 gal everyone seems to get along well enough chasing here and there of each other and other tank mates also but none of this results in damaged fins. I would say the sapphire seem to stay together they have one area of the tank where they all live. The others just seem to have a spot they like and this will change through out the year as they find areas they like better than others.
The humbugs seem to be the most aggressive.
I agree they are a very cool fish and caught in the right light very beautiful. I think they are overlooked because of the being so cheap.

 

[Jasonak]