72 gal stocking???'s (im new to fish-only)

[FishKid]

as some of you may know, I have a 72 gal S. Nattereri tank, in which, I have decided to switch to fish that arent illegal in most of the US... but, what would I be able to keep?

fish that I want to choose from:

1. dwarf lion (or any other lion)
2. clown trigger
3. Picasso Trigger
4. Tesselata eel
5. SnowFlake Moray eel
6. Scorpion fish
7. Panther Grouper
8. Miniatus Grouper
9. Golden Puffer
10. Marine Betta
11. Harlequin Tusk

arm my sights a little too high? I havent yet looked into the adult sizes of all of the fish...

mark

[Mikeman]

I know for a fact that the pather grouper will outgrow it,
the tesselta eel, is pretty spendy, personally the snowflake is the least aggrasive eel, and I think by far the best one for home aquaria, I highly reccomend it. the dwarf lion would be a good choice as would the marine betta, if I was going to stock it I would have

snowflake eel
dwarf lion
marine betta
a pair of goldne marron clowns

but then again I dont like really aggrasive fish as it puffers, and triggers

cowfish I think are cool, you might want to check those out too

[FishKid]

Mike, I think we all know that you are in love with snowflake eels

I know that the tesselata is $$$ but they are really cool and eat alot! (we had one at the LFS)

I will upgrade tank size to 125 gal in about 3 years, so I figure that I could get a juv. panther and be safe.. but who knows? I bet ninong does

ok heres my narrowed down list (I do this with every tank I start ) :

1. Dwarf Lion
2. Marine Betta
3. tesselata eel
4. snowflake eel
5. Clown trigger (has to be my all time favorite fish!)
6. Panther grouper

would that selection (minus either eel) go good in a 72 then a (as growth demands) 125 gal?

mark

[chromis]

tesselata eels(honeycomb eels) get very HUGE. They will run around your tank eating fish and trying to jump out and bite you. THey need very large tanks, probably bigger then a 72 or 125. My lfs has one also and it has been there for about a year, it has bullied a whole bunch of lionfish and other eels and now is by itself. Also if you want the clown trigger then you should probably skip everything else cept maybe a couple damsels. The trigger will most likely harrass your eels and chew off your dwarf lions fins. As for upgrading in 3 years, are you going to college? I know my parents would kill me if I left them a 125 to take care of. If your confident that you'll upgrade, then try the grouper, the lion, snowflake eel and maybe betta (sorry, no expeirience with this species)

HTH
Andrew

[organicreefer]

even a 125 isnt big enough for the clown trigger imo
i completely agree with mikemans suggestions,- a fish or two;;

[fishguy_8]

chromis took the words out of my mouth....if you want a puffer or a trigger you should skip the lionfish because they will nip at your lions graceful fins until the lion is a) reallllllllly hurt or b) dead c)maybe just a little more after the lion dies.....so you should choose one or the other.....if it was me.... volitan lion and a snowflake eel......done. the more aggressive the fish the more feces you are talking the more feces you are talking the more no3's you are talking......i think you see where everyone is goin. pick out a couple that you could dedicate the 72 to. your fish will love it if there is more space to swim. good luck.
Jon

[organicreefer]

yes the trigger will kill the lion and probly everything else.i wanted a trigger in my fowlr, but after much debate decided against it ,i have alot of life on the rocks i would like to keep. i also want crabs, snails, starfishes, urchins, and maybe a lobster,alot of really cool inverts i that i wont put in my reef.

[jwtrojan44]

I have to agree with mikeman's first reply. The snowflake, betta and dwarf lion would be a great mix for that size tank. They would'nt outgrow it, and you might even get away with a couple other small fish to round it out. Stay away from the groupers and triggers. I currently have a large snowflake in a 55 and am contemplating a marine betta. As a side note, I post on 4 different boards and there seems to be a widespread propensity to overstock tanks with fish that will outgrow them. A 72 gal is a nice sized tank but it is not a BIG tank. I used to think my 56 gal was big. NOT! There are so many great fish to choose from that almost everyone can have a desirable set-up without overstocking or having compatability nightmares. Look around at all different species and you'll see stuff that will work great with your set up. Good luck. JWT

[fishrule]

Fishkid, everyone thinks that clown triggers are devils, not true. I have one in my 200 gallon tank with tangs, angels, lion fish, clowns, wrasses, and he is fine. Sometimes the other fish will even mess with him.

[FishKid]

I really like the clown trigger, but I know first hand how much they can hurt you...

for all you who dont know, a betta is a grouper (from what I've read anyway)

Your right, I remember seeing a full grown tesselata now, it was in a 500 gal shark tank with only one shark!

Most of the colleges around here let you keep a fish tank in your dorm, (thats if I go to a college far away, it I go around here, I will just stay at home.)

so the consensus is no trigger? darn! Even if I dumped the lion?

1. dwarf lion
2. snowflake eel
3. Marine Betta
4. panther Grouper
5. Harlequin Tusk
Im confident that I will upgrade! to 125 min!

Im also looking into going with a mess of smaller fish, like anthias, wrasses, tangs, and dwarf angels...

how would an achilles tang do? I've seen these guys in schools at the local aquarium.

mark

[FMarini]

Hi:
I think you've got a good selection here.
This 72 gal will probably allow 3 or 4 small fish to do well for a while and that 125 you're talking about will be a little helpful (you should think 180 instead =^0.
regardless.
I would stay w/ the snowflake a dwarf lion, the marine betta, and maybe a small tusk. Everyone should get along and not mess w/ each other too bad.
panther grouper will outgrow this tank in 1 yr...skip it

triggers...go w/ the planktonic feeders, like blue cheek, pink tailed, niger, etc. you get the trigger look w/ no Rhinocanthus personality

Is this gonna be in your college dorm room? kinda big isn't it? why not think about a 30gal instead and just keep reef-compatible yet colorful fish. A FO tank w/ this volume of waste makers will require water changes, good skimming, and low light. W/ the inclusion of the tusk you can't have a good sandbed (these guys will forage thru the sand eatting all the critters), and lugging 200lbs of sand up 5 flights of stairs ain't cool. How often will you be moving??? every yr or every semester?

If you do think about the dwarf lion then no more little fish, and the snowflake will also ensure you have no moving inverts.
Personally achilles tangs are touchy fish, but very active fish, so your call.
goodluck
frank
__________________
To see my 180 gal tank of lions:
http://www.marshreef.org/members/fmarini/index.htm

[FishKid]

thanks for all of the replies, I dont know all of the details for the college yet (im still in 10th grade) dont worry about the sand, Im strong (ego alert)

I showed my mom some pics of those fish on my list should have seen her face "THATS NOT GOING IN MY LIVING ROOM!!" (but she lets my keep the S. Nattereri in the livingroom, go figure!) so I will be aiming for the $$$ approach, and going reef! The way I figure it, if I get a sunday job during the football season, i can make $40 a week, until Football is over, then I can work more, Xmas money (about $400) that should have me set for a skimmer(ETSS Super Reef Devil, lighting (2x 110w PC fixture + 2 HQI 250w (or 150w) MH) LR (45#fiji or manano + 5# tonga branch), 150# SouthDown (would that leave 4"?)

Might as well stick with what I know, plus I have more of a selection for fish. And mark my words, I will have a Dragonet! Bwahahaha

the only catch, I cannot start the tank until I can beat the bryopsis! Thats like sending a kid to his room and saying no TV!

mark

BTW, what do I do with the S. Nattereri? Local Lake it is (J/K) (I already have a friend that wants some idiot wants to pay $50 a piece!