Yes Or No

[Yuri]

is a moorish idel reef safe or not
And what do you do to keeping it alive

 

[ben1987]

with extream caution. Generally considered not reef safe as they will munch corals.

They have an extreamly poor survival rate so if i were you i wouldnt bother. They can be fat and healthy eating for months. Then just be found dead the next day

 

[Yuri]

thanks

 

[1234-fishy-freind]

Like ben said, moorish idols are hard to care for and can quickly deteriorate after seemingly being well.
However, there is a fish called a black and white butterfly fish or lingfish banner fish which looks alot like the moorish idol. This fish is much easier to care for but, like the idol, it is also relativley un-reef safe.
Worth a look though

josh

 

[Yuri]

i had one it got my hamer coral so it whent back to the pet shop

 

[1234-fishy-freind]

Hmm
What is your current stock list, what size tank is it and what corals/inverts have you got in there.
We may be able to find you a fish yet!

josh

 

[scott133]

hi

i have had a morish idol and had it for a year and stoped eating the 2nd one i had for was 2 weeks to find it dead 3rd one DOA and are so hard to keep it goes into my longest every set up which is 8 years old and is the only fish i cant keep in any of my tanks.

 

[Yuri]

my tank is a 6ft 450L my sump is 200L
what is in my tank :
Fish :
Cleaner wrasse
Yellow tang
Kupang damsel
Yellow watchman goby
Lawnmower blenny
Snail :
Astraea snail
Nerite snail
Lobster :
Red lobster
Anemone :
Sebae anemone
Green bulb anemone
Hermit crab :
Electric blue knuckel hermit crab
2 * Blue leg hermit crab
Scarlet red hermit crab
Crab :
Porcelain anemone crab
Scallop :
Electric flame scallop
Shrimp :
Camel shrimp
Coral banded shrimp pair
Cleaner shrimp*2
Corals :
Hammer coral branch green *2
Button polyps
Yellow zoanthid

 

[ben1987]

there is two types of banner fish
H. diphreutes (which is reef safe)

Heniochus acuminatus (not reef safe)

both look very similar, so you have to be 100% sure what your buying

 

[1234-fishy-freind]

Ah thanks ben, something I didnt know there

Yuri, with a tank of that size you do still have lots of stocking options left
There are lots of reef safe wrasse out there, such as fairy wrasse and they are brightly coloured, they do jump however so if you choose one of those it would be worth while to cover your tank if it doesnt already have one.

You could also add another tang, such as a regal however, these are ich magnets so a quartine tank is a must for one of those fish, once aclimatised though they do prove to be very hardy.

Smaller angel fish like the coral beauty and flame angle. These fish can be kept in reefs as it is down to the individual fish as to if it will eat corals or not. My coral beauty is generally well behaved.

Since you have shrimp, all reef safe triggers and puffers are ruled out im afraid.

Im asuming that your porcelain crab is hosting your anemone so if you get a clown there would most likely be some issues there, unless the clown was captive bred and had not ever had access to an anemone previously.

There are just some options for you. Like I said, you do still have plenty of space for more fish, just choose your stocking wisley.
Good luck mate


Josh

 

[Yuri]

i will have a look for a heniochus diphreutes
I am thinking of taking my yellow tang back to the pet store and get a purple tang
And when i have more experians i will like to get a achilles tang
I have for got to put up i have got clown fish
I will like a fire shrimp and a pistol shrimp
Will a spider decerative crab be ok in my tank
Any other small fis you guys can think of let me know thanks

 

[1234-fishy-freind]

Spider decorators are a tough one.
Some say they are bad for a reef as they pull off polyps from colonies and stick them to their backs but others say that in a tank filled with corals is doesnt really matter as it usually goes unnoticed and that the actions of the crab help spread the corals around so it depends really. You say you have a 200l sump, if you did want a decorator, you could always put one in there to add more interest to your sump.

For other smaller fish, I really like firefish, and personally I think the purple fire fish is the more attractive one.
There are also green chromis' which create a very attractive display if kept in a large shoal. However, the damsel you already have might be an issue as it could turn aggresive.

josh

 

[Yuri]

i had a good day my yellow tang is back at the pet shop and i have a purple tang in my tank
And now a fire shrimp as well

 

[seffieuk]

i had a good day my yellow tang is back at the pet shop and i have a purple tang in my tank
And now a fire shrimp as well

lovely, photo please

Seffie x

 

[Yuri]

the only photos i am geting are rubish (i am using my cellphone camera)