Good pink reef safe fish?

[FutureInterest]

Leslie I consider all anthias besdies lyretails and maybe even squares to be "expert only". Even then I don't recommend them unless you simply must have them . They're gorgeous, even prettier than some of my favorite wrasses but its hard to keep them alive...

 

[derek_s]

Jin is right, I neglected to comment that I have no knowledge on how easy Carberryis are to keep. They maybe be very difficult. I have had good luck with both squares and lyretails as Jin said, but they were both eating well from the previous owners, and I have not yet had them for a long period of time.

I am curently coaxing a pair of Tukas trying to get them to eat.

 

[curator]

So lyretail anthias is easy? And there are pinks ones...right?

 

[leslie]

So I don't resemble "expert." Is this because of their eating habits or requirements? Live Aquaria has them all ranked "moderate" in care level. How does the disbar measure up to the lyretail and square?

 

[derek_s]

Lyretails are the easiest as far as I know. They still prefer mult feedings a day, but are not so hard to get eating or adapting to lighting.

They generally are not really pink, I think bright orange is more accurate, but I have seen them vary in color depending of source, and some I have seen were close to a pink/orange color. I got a few from Marine fish that were pinkish, but over time they have gotten more orange, so maybe it is a result of food type and nutrition.

 

[FutureInterest]

Lyretails are shallow water anthias so are used to our bright and nutrient poor environments. The deeper down you go the pickier a fish can be when it comes to food as there is just more of it available. The shallow water species though have to take what they can get and be glad for it.

I'm no anthias expert by any means, but disbars are from my understanding harder to get to eat than lyretails/squares for certain but not along the lines of say a tuka or ventralis. I would be leary of anything with the "moderate" tag as they are trying to sell you something after all . Your best bet though is to find some anthias in a local LFS. If they will physically eat at the store, then you've got yourself a winner and "moderate" "expert" "easy" tags become irrelevant.

 

[derek_s]

Leslie;258170 wrote: So I don't resemble "expert." Is this because of their eating habits or requirements? Live Aquaria has them all ranked "moderate" in care level. How does the disbar measure up to the lyretail and square?

It's tough to really rank them since each shipment of fish can vary from very hardy to very frail. I think generally speaking anthias are considered difficult because of eating requirements (and lack of eating) and lighting. You will have to do more research since I dont know it all, but here is the jist:

1- Anthias do not really have stomachs, or have very small stomachs, but have high metabolisms. This requires multiple feedings per day, preferably throughout the day. This poses a little difficulty, as most anthais do not like to eat dry foods (so no auto feeder) but my lyretails fortunatly do eat pellets.

2 - Anthias usually thrive in deeper water conditions than where our corals thrive, so they are not adapted to the intense lights of a reef tank. Unless they are already adapted, any new anthais should be acclimated to your lights slowly over time by reducing the intensity or photoperiod of our lights.

3 - Many anthais are shy and difficult to get eating in captivity. They are notorious for not eating, even the more easy ones (squares and lyretails) should be checked to see if they are eating in the store before you purchase them.

4 - Anthias also require a good range of nutritious foods. They can lose their color and develop shaggy fins if they dont get a good selection of foods. I use Brine, Plankton, PE Mysis, and Cyclopeeze (several which were recommended by an experienced anthias-keeper) I also have started fortifying with Vitachem to see if colors improve.

 

[derek_s]

Jin is right about purchasing from a local store if possible. And The disbars are a lot of times difficult to get eating as well, from what I've heard.

Saltwater City and Marine Fish often have many varieties of Anthias in stock, and many other fish stores at least occasionally get them or can order them. Any fish store should be happy to feed tehm whilst you watch.

Jin, I think Bartletts can also be added to the 'easier' list with the lyretails, do you think?

 

[derek_s]

You know something you might try is to do a google search on the various anthias you are intrested in. Then in the results, look for fish forums where people posted their experiences about the particular fish (avoid merchant sites that sell these fish). I did this on Tukas to get some ideas on jkeeping them before I got my pair.

Also search on Reef Central as there is a huge assortment of experiences over there with various anthias.

At least after doing that you can decide if anthias are a challenge you are interested in taking on. I did, and I have really enjoyed it. It is fun to keep a slightly more challenging fish, especially since they are extremely pleasing to the eye and have interesting social behaviors.

 

[FutureInterest]

I've seen a lot success with the bartlett so I think its fair to add them in there. It's not as cut and dry with them though imo . They seem to have a will to live though and will eventually eat... in most cases. All in all, anthias are sometimes very perplexing I just don't understand fish that would rather starve to death than at least sample the stuff floating by.

 

[derek_s]

haha, well put. I sample many things that float by, thus my emerging gut.