Fish FOR Beginners

[Fishfirst]

A follow up post on fish NOT for beginners, these are fish I feel are suitable after a fishless cycle and a quick run down on how much tank space they need, what they eat, etc.

Pajama Cardinalfish - easy to take care of, and fairly hardy, best if kept singley in small aquariums, but more than one can be kept in larger aquariums. Need min 20 gallons, can grow to about 3 inches, are a carnivore that will eat flake foods pellet foods live shrimp frozen shrimp and other meaty foods. Needs peaceful tankmates. WIll not eat inverts/corals/small fish.

Green Chromis - a little more sensitive to water quality, best if kept in groups or a school, is an omnivore that will eat meaty preperations, flakes, pellets, and herbivore foods, vitamin enrichment will help keep thier bright color. They can grow to 3 inches and have a min. tank size of 30 Gallons. Again needs peaceful tankmates. Will not eat inverts/corals/small fish.

Ocellaris Clownfish - preferably tank raised, these are hardy fish with good personality, should be kept single or in a pair, they grow up to 4 inches in length and are an omnivore that will eat an array of foods including all that have been mentioned. They are peaceful and require peaceful tankmates and a min tank size of 30 gallons. Will not eat inverts/corals/ small fish.

Tomato Clownfish - preferably tank raised, a little more aggressive than the ocellaris (should not be kept with other clowns in a smaller size tank). Tomato Clowns grow up to 5 inches, and are an omnivore. Should have a forty gallon tank for swimming room. May pick on peaceful tankmates.
Will not eat corals.

Firefish - Known to be jumpers (so keep your lids on), these little peaceful fish can be kept singley or in a pair. They need around 10 gallons of water and are carnivores. They attain a length of 3 inches but are slender in form. Live rock should be in the tank for multiple hiding spots. They will not eat inverts/corals/small fish.

Flame Hawkfish - Semi-aggressive in nature, these should not have peaceful tankmates, but are very hardy fish. Need live rock to hang out on. They grow up to 4" and should have a min of 30 gallons and are active carnivores. They will eat inverts and small fish.

Yellow Tang - best if kept singlely, and with no other species of tang if it is a smaller tank. Must have at least 55 gallons when younger and 75 gallons when becoming an adult. These herbivores will eat nori and other herbivore foods such as algae flakes and pick at live rock. They are semi-aggressive but some peaceful fish can be kept with them. They grow to up to 8 inches in length and will not eat inverts/coral/small fish.

These are just a few of the beginner fish, I will add, and I hope someone else will have some comments about these and other beginner fish.

[Fishfirst]

Six Lined Wrasse - best if its the only wrasse in your system, 30 gallons or larger for this smaller wrasse that grows to 3" in length. May intimidate peaceful tankmates, but are not aggressive. They are a carnivore that should be fed live foods once in a while (pyrimidellid snails and some urchins). Will not eat inverts/coral/small fish.

Volitan Lionfish - needing 70 gallons because of a large bioload and messy eating habits. A good solitary fish or fish with tangs angels and other large fish. They have venomous spines, which make them a unique fish. Maybe trained to eat crustacean flesh, usually will eat live fish and inverts. Will not eat corals.

[redpaulhus]

Royal Gramma
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/grammas.htm

Neon Gobies
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/neongobies.htm


Dwarf Angels (if the tank has liverock) such as Coral Beauty
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/fi...pyge/index.htm

[Fishfirst]

Thanks for adding... I do agree those fish are good for beginners.

[TheOldSalt]

Since most beginners have tanks too small for a Yellow Tang, I would recommend in it's place the smaller Scopas Tang. It has variable coloration, and while not a bright as a Yellow, it has a charm of it's own. It's also nearly indestructable, and it is really quite a feat to kill one. It's also not so much the "ick magnet" that the other tangs are. It has lots of personality, too.

I'd also recommend the small puffers in the Canthigaster group, since no one else has yet.

[blargin]

damsel fish are good to have for cycling but when you want to get into other fish like clowns you need to get rid of them unless you have lots of live rock and in the clown fishes concerns an anemone host for protection.

[Fishfirst]

Never use damsels when cycling a tank... there are better methods than that! Also damsels tend to be very aggressive...

[badfish]

what size tank is required for a mature scopolas tang?

[Fishfirst]

mature needs around 100 gallons. To thrive, tangs need a lot of swimming room... You could probably get away with one in your 40 gallon for a year or two though. I have my yellow tang in my 55 right now... soon to upgrade to the 125 in less than a year though.

[Fishfirst]

Yellow Watchmen Gobys - will form simbiotic relationships with pistol shrimp, likes to burrow and hide and only needs 10 gallons of water, they are agressive usually only to conspecifics. They grow up to 3" and need a carnivores diet. They will not eat inverts/corals/small fish.

[Chance]

Dwarf angels are not good for beginners they can be picky on what they want to eat. I have found that they can also get sick easy.

[Fishfirst]

coral beauties seem to be a pretty good choice for beginners. Although I would never recommend a bi-color or flame until they have some knowledge under their belt. Bi-colors I would say are expert only. Also pigmy angels seem pretty easy to keep.