Pacific Blue Tang for Beginners?

[delu5ions]

you know..ive just started this hobby of saltwater fish keeping and while working at a fish store ive learned a few things about certain fish such as the pacific blue tang aka DORY. and dr. foster and smith claim that it is a good fish for beginners. now correct me if im wrong but arent blue tangs pretty difficult to keep? i mean at my store ive noticed that those guys are pretty hard to keep because they are so timid and not very aggressive eaters. i dunno..maybe our fish are just weak? you can see it for yourself through this link: http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/scateg.cfm?siteid=21&pCatId=1926

tell me if anyone else agrees but does this sound like another one of those 'keeping-finding-nemo-fish-are-easy' scams?

[Dz99ls]

first of all dont even think about any tang in a 20g tank as for the fish itself they are ok but susceptable to ich we kept onfe for many years and it had no problem feeding. so if someday you decide on a larger tank like 125 or more you would be ok with this fish

[snowroach]

Yea, I made the mistake of haveing one in a 30g. he started getting to big for the tank and he started getting ich and not looking to good. I traded hime to some one with a 185g tank and the tang is much happier now. But that are pretty easy fish to keep.

[brettzki]

Yup the lil dude's doing great ... he's even a lil bit territorial, which is good as far as i'm concerned. Mean's they're both happy and comfortable. Thanks again Roach!

[wombat2]

Not for beginners. With very few exceptions, all tangs should be kept in tanks of at least 100 gallons that have ample swimming room. Tangs roam all over the reef in nature--they're not limited to a small territory like angels and others. As such, they need to swim--a lot.

I'd say Paracanthurus hepatus is in the mid range of difficulty as far as tangs go. They'll nibble at nori and other algae but they should be fed meaty material primarily. They're usually not very aggressive to other tangs either, at least compared to some other members of the family.

...and btw, if you search enough online vendors you will find all sorts of terrible info--flame scallops are easy, mandarins should be fed frozen brine, etc.

[delu5ions]

oh no no no. i personally dont have a pacific blue in my home tank. we've just had a few at the store ive worked at and theyve never faired too well as juveniles.

[delu5ions]

oh god no. id never keep a pacific blue in a 20G. thats terrrrrible.

[wombat2]

Most fish don't fare too well as very small juveniles. Angels and clown triggers are a really good example. It's best to get them in their mid range size. A good size for P. hepatus is probably anywhere from 3-5" or so.