school of 5 bartlett anthias in a 75g?

[afex]

hey all,

i'm making a stocking list for my 75g SPS/LSP reef, and i really like the purple/gold coloration of bartlett anthias that i have seen.

i were to put 5 in my tank (1 male, 4 female) do you think they would be ok? would i have any extra room for other fish?

thanks.

[Peter Eichler]

I'd suggest something else, they're not very easy to take care of (easier than most Anthias though) and they require frequent feedings which isn't very good for reefs. Lastly, 5 of them in a 75 gallon is too much.

[McCrary]

5 would probably be too many, 1 male would be more realistic.

[AquaReeferMan]

Yeah like stated before I think it would over-crowed your tank. They need a lot of room to swim and need a lot of food. The large bio load of just those 5 fish would be a problem if you wanna add any other fish.

[143gadgets]

I guess I am the odd ball.... I think you should get 3 females and 1 male and you would be fine. I have four lyretails in my 75 and they are doing fine. I have only had them for about 8 months now, but they are as fat and as healthy as they can possibly be. I have other fish in the tank as well. I am using a very powerful skimmer though, but it is a recent upgrade. I used a Deltec AP600 before the AP701 and the bio-load was fine.

What other fish do u plan to add? Will this tank be a BB?

[afex]

tank is a SSB (1-2" of oolite) and my current skimmer is an ASM G2.

as far as other fish i'm not too sure. i have a friend holding a clownfish and royal gramma for me while i restart my tank and i'd like to keep those, but the similar colorations of the gramma and male bartlett worry me. (wouldn't want them to fight) if i had to pick b/t an anthias group and the gramma, i'd pick the anthias since i want swimming fish, not hiding ones.

if anything, i'd like to keep my options open if needs arise (lawnmower blenny for algae, ccb for aiptasia, etc, etc) but its not a necessity

143gadgets, i'm interested in learning more about your setup. (equipment and stocking list, along with feeding regiment) can you PM me (or post here) some info on how you successfully keep your anthias? thanks!

[143gadgets]

My tank is 75g BB. I feed a mixture of Hikari Brine and Hikari Mysis 2-3 times a day. 3x4 piece of nori once a day and cyclopeeze once a week.

Livestock:

1. False Percs (2)
2. Emperor Angel
3. Yellow Tang
4. Blue-Eyed Anthias Female (3)
5. Lyretail Anthias Male
6. Solar Wrasse
7. Algae Blenny
8. Hawian Flame Wrasse Male
9. Flame Wrasse Female
10. Completely SPS
11. ~115lbs Marshall Island LR

Equipment:

75 Gallon AGA
Custom Canopy and Stand
20 Gallon Sea Clear Systems Sump
JBJ ATO w/ 20gallon Resevior

Mag 7 Return
Tunze Stream 6100 (2)

Icecap 250W MH Ballast (2)
14k 250w SE Bulbs
Icecap 660 Ballast
110w Super Actinic Bulbs (2)
Icecap 4" Variable Speed Fans (2)

Deltec AP701 Protein Skimmer
TLF Phosban Reactor (Carbon/Phosban mix)
Neptune Systems Aqua Controller Jr.

[143gadgets]

Here are a few pics.

[afex]

tell me about your lighting period and feeding times

i'm interested to see how you fit your feedings in with your daily schedule. i work 8-5 and have my lighting set up for the afternoon (1pm-11pm as of right now) so i can enjoy it when i get off work. but only feeding in the afternoon doesn't seem like it would work with multiple feedings.

i researched anthias a few months ago and the main point everybody focused on was their high metabolism and need for frequent feedings.

thanks for the specs and pics!

[reefnewbie54321]

Whats your tank dimensions (I might have missed it)

I dont think 5 Anthias is to much but I am a fish person and have a bigger bio-load then most.

Bartlet Anthias are the smallest and I have seen a 100g with 11 that was running fine.

As long as your skimmer can handle the 3x a day feeding for 5 Fish plus any others you want to add then I say ok.

My new stock list for a 120 looks like this,

7-9 Bartlett Anthias
2 Percula Clowns
1 Yellow Tang

[143gadgets]

Actinics On- 10am
Actinics Off- 11pm
Halides On- 1pm
Halides Off- 8pm

I feed at 10am, 6pm, and 10pm. Ithis is not written in stone and will vary somedays.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

[SDguy]

I agree with Chris. I think you'll be fine with 4 or 5 bartletts in your 75. Your LPS will definitely like it SPS might not, with the extra feedings. Might have to step up on the water changes. I too though am a fish guy and like heavy bioloads. JMO.

[afex]

Originally posted by reefnewbie54321
Whats your tank dimensions (I might have missed it)

I dont think 5 Anthias is to much but I am a fish person and have a bigger bio-load then most.

Bartlet Anthias are the smallest and I have seen a 100g with 11 that was running fine.

As long as your skimmer can handle the 3x a day feeding for 5 Fish plus any others you want to add then I say ok.

My new stock list for a 120 looks like this,

7-9 Bartlett Anthias
2 Percula Clowns
1 Yellow Tang

tank is standard 75g (48" x 18" x 21")

my skimmer, while a good brand (ASM), has never really skimmed that much. but before i had a very low bio load. it was my first foray into reefing so i was playing it safe. now 2 years later, i'm ready to do what i want using what i've learned.

Originally posted by 143gadgets
Actinics On- 10am
Actinics Off- 11pm
Halides On- 1pm
Halides Off- 8pm

I feed at 10am, 6pm, and 10pm. Ithis is not written in stone and will vary somedays.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

it helps alot. my main issue comes from the fact that i can't feed b/t 8am and 5pm. does feeding with the lights off work? if so, i'm thinking about 7:30, 5:30, and 10:30. if not, i dunno what i'll do about that.

[willy21]

I think it is completely possible for 5 anthias to be in that tank, seeing as how I have almost the same setup as you. I have three bartletts, looking for another female, along with a blue tang, maroon clown, marine betta, and royal gramma.

[McCrary]

afex- If you want 4-5 anthias in a reef tank than be prepared to put some money into a quality skimmer, 143gadgets is running a $1100 skimmer. SPS are not tolerant of water quality that most corals will endure. 4-5 anthias would be fine in a tank with an ASM2, but the corals that you want wouldn't be.

[afex]

is the quality of a skimmer only rated by amount of skimmate produced per hour? i.e. is his skimmer so much more expensive just due to the fact that it produces more skimmate faster than mine does?

also, aren't there other factors involved in regards to water quality? by that i mean other means of nutrient export (carbon/phosban reactors, refugiums, etc) to make up for lack of skimmate production.

thanks for the comments!

[McCrary]

A good skimmer is judged on the quality of skimmate and the quantity. Your refugium will help to rid your tank of excess nutrients and control nitrates, but a good skimmer goes a lot further to improve water quality, IMO. SPS like low nutrient tanks and 4-5 anthias that need to be fed frequently are going to produce a lot of waste. If you want to keep SPS and not replace your skimmer than you have to go light on the bioload. Or not keep SPS. If you want both a heavy bioload and SPS than you have to upgrade to a skimmer that can handle larger bioloads.

[afex]

thanks for the advice.

[143gadgets]

I think tht your g2 will skim the tank fine. As I said before i used to run an AP600 on my 75 with the same bioload. if you are going to have the anthias with SPS just make sure that u watch what other fish you plan to put in with them. Don't get discouraged. The G2 is rated for a 110 gallon system and your at about 105g with your sump included. I think you will be fine, just make sure that you keep up on your water changes. If you decide to do the recirculation mode on your skimmer you would be in even better shape. Remember.... HAVE FUN AND ENJOY YOUR TANK!!!!!!!!!!!

[143gadgets]

All of the pics were before the upgrade to the Deltec AP701.

[McCrary]

Originally posted by 143gadgets
HAVE FUN AND ENJOY YOUR TANK!!!!!!!!!!!

Always good advice.