Fish for a 4' 150

[ayaws]

My aquarium is a 4' 150XH (48x24x30)

Today its inhabitants are:
Small 2" sailfin tang
Small 2" Yellow Tang
2 Small Banggai Cardinals
1 Small Flame Cardinal
3 BlueGreen Chromis
1 2.5" Female squareback anthias
2 skunk cleaners

I have been quite happy with this stock list and truly thought it should be done fish-wise but lately my wife has been bugging me to add another showy-fish in.

Most of the rest of the tank will be a mix of SPS and LPS stuff. Those inhabitants are:
Unidentified Acro frag -- probably plating (green/blue)
Unidentified Acro frag -- definitely branching (green/blue) Possibly some echinata morph
Poscillopora 5" chunk
Green Star rock (5" across and growing rapidly.)
6 blue mushrooms on a 3" frag plug (at the bottom)
2 small (was one, then I broke it trying to remove the frag plug) frogspawn frags. (Healthy but probably free to a good home.)

I've considered adding in a blue-throat trigger that someone has been relatively aggressively trying to sell to me but am hesitant to put such an active fish in a tank that is only 4' long. That and the two tangs are aggressive/active enough already. Chromis don't really bother anyone and the cardinals just chill. The squareback is a bit frisky as well although I've never seen her nip at anyone...just a few 'get away from my food' runs.

Thoughts and opinions on additions?

As this tank ages a few more months, it will most likely get a clam. I've had good luck with squamosas & derasas but would like to try out a tridacna maxima...

Nutrients and elements (Ca, Mg, KH, etc) are rock solid stable.

Thanks!
Adam

 

[sethsolomon]

Well pretty much all you have left that you can add is a blenny and wrasses.


My recommendations are:
Midas blenny
and 3 wrasses from any of the following genuses:

Cirrhilabrus
Macropharyngodon
Paracheilinus
Pseudocheilinus
Wetmorella
and possibly Halichoeres or Anampses but these can eat your snails ,hermits, and small shrimp.

 

[jahmic]

I'd also recommend looking at flasher and fairy wrasses as options for "showy" fish that won't disrupt your current inhabitants. Blennies and Jawfish are cool...but they can be shy, which could be a disappointment if you're looking for a show fish.

 

[SkyShark]

Percula or occelaris clownfish should also be a good "showy" option. Firefish or a royal gramma are also cool, but are more shy

 

[zombie]

If it were me, I would get a melanarus or leopard wrasse, a pair of designer clownfish, and a mandarin goby. Those will add some pop for the wifey and will work well with current inhabitants.

 

[sethsolomon]

Some teaser pics of HOT wrasses with ballpark prices:



Lineatus Wrasse: $150-$250

Rhomboid Wrasse: $200-$400

Scott's Fairy Wrasse: $80-$160

Flame Wrasse: $130-$250

Labouti Wrasse: $90-$150

Mystery Wrasse: $90-$130

Potter's Wrasse: $40-$75

Leopard Wrasse: $30-$60

Anampses femininus: ~$2000

EDIT: Forgot to add the one we were talking about in chat:

Labropsis polynesica: $3000

 

[zombie]

You missed the melanarus. I got mine for $50 and they are on par with most $100+ wrasses.

 

[FinsUp]

I'd also recommend looking at flasher and fairy wrasses as options for "showy" fish that won't disrupt your current inhabitants. Blennies and Jawfish are cool...but they can be shy, which could be a disappointment if you're looking for a show fish.

Percula or occelaris clownfish should also be a good "showy" option. Firefish or a royal gramma are also cool, but are more shy

+1 and +1

I had a royal gramma who was a total attention hog. Front and center all the time. Definitely bright and showy, but not large, and tended to stay in one area of the tank (he didn't disturb any of the other members of the tank unless they tried to infiltrate his rock formation). But I've seen others that were quite shy, so that's kind of a crap shoot fish.

Wrasses are always a good option. Usually colorful and active, plus many of them are great exterminators.

 

[ayaws]

Those are definitely some great looking wrasses. The only wrasse I've ever owned (at least a decade ago) was a 6-line. Never had a bit of trouble with them. I love clowns but I don't really want to put them in a tank sans anemone. I also love nems but I'm not really sure I want one in this tank.

Off to do some research! Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[ayaws]

The Labropsis polynesica is super cool looking but you might have to swing by my corner on S. Broadway where I'm rattling a can after my wife kicks me out for buying a $3K fish.

Oh and thanks @sethsolomon. Those are some HOT wrasses.

 

[FinsUp]

Yeah, Seth has champagne taste in fish. You gotta watch him.

 

[sethsolomon]

Yeah, Seth has champagne taste in fish. You gotta watch him.

Pssshh

 

[ayaws]

I don't necessarily see anything wrong with having champagne tastes. I like what was posted and will likely buy some over the coming months. ($3000 wrasse notwithstanding.)

 

[seschafer]

I had a Mystery Wrasse that killed almost every other fish I added to the tank. Gorgeous fish, but if you get one think about getting a juv.

Steve

 

[ayaws]

Thanks Steve. I will start hunting shortly.

 

[Punjab]

Wrasses are too hit or miss in temperament in my opinion. They'll also obsessively search every inch of every rock eating all the micro fauna they can find.

I would recommend getting a harem of anthias. You can easily spend "champagne taste" levels of cash on the rarer species, you can add more than one (recommended), and they definitely add some interesting color to the tank! Anthias will also eat a lot of micro fauna from your tank but they mostly swim with each other in open water and don't spend every second cruising the surface of every rock to eat tube worms and amphipods.
DO IT! You won't be sorry!

 

[ayaws]

I like my anthias however this is a tank with VERY high light. The female I have is super social and visible but the male I *had* (dead) hid in the rocks the whole time. I'd consider getting another couple but I'm still reeling a bit from killing it. (I very rarely kill things unintentionally.)

 

[ayaws]

So a little update:

Pulled out and sold my two tangs (Yellow and Sailfin.) They were gorgeous and I miss them but they were getting a little too frisky with one another.

So now the stock list is:
1.5" Female leopard wrasse (eating well)
2.5" Red headed male solorensis wrasse
1.5" Lubbock's wrasse
2" Exquisite wrasse
3" Female Squareback Anthias
3" Kole Tang
2 2" Bangai Cardinals
2.5" Flame Cardinal
3 1.5" blue/green chromis (happy as can be)

The cardinals are good but are fairly boring. Such is life with mostly nocturnal fish.

I have a bad case of the want-ies for a purple tang to go along here. From what I hear they play well along with the Kole. Then maybe a dwarf angel or two to round it out. Giving the angels some heavy thought and research...

 

[Haddonisreef]

List looks good if u do angel the Lamarck are good I have one in my 180 the dwarf I had was a zoa eater.

 

[ayaws]

I have considered a Lamarck -- but I have some nice clams. How has your experience been? Any issues with clams and angels?