Tankerini

After 2 months of research on the whole sw tank and thinking I had decided what I wanted (clowns, tangs, etc...)

I have finally decided after numerous visits to my lfs that I would actually like schooling fish like blue/green chromis, banggai cardinals and anthias (pinky coloured ones). However after researching these types of fish I have found different advice and opinions i.e some say these fish should be put in groups of a minimum of 3 and best kept in odd numbers (not sure why as it says they like to pair off). Also seems to be a problem with them fighting amongst each other.

Anyone with these species in their tank (or have had them), please let me know from your own experience how they got on and your opinion on numbers etc.

I have a 75 us gallon (60 uk gallon) tank any advice on stocking the above welcomed (yes all of them).

Thanks

Wolfgang8810

I really like the bartletts anthias the key with
them is the odd number. it is so one female isn't harrased all the time. on a personal note I don't like the cardnals just because they aren't super active like the anthias. the chromis are by far the cheepest option and are very pretty in groups.

Slug

Threadfin Cardinalfish or Chromis are your best options for schools. Banggai Cardinals tend to avoid groups once they pair off.

Anthias are all hermaphroditic though, so they will switch sexes on you if they feel like it. And are larger more aggressive fish then the Chromis and Cardinalfish.

Chalk Bass would be another option.

However, in the wild fish shoal and school to provide protection. Without the natural predators or any predators at all in the tank, they will not give you the best display like a picture from your underwater tropical vacation of a huge tight school of fish. They should still stick together, but probably not at the level you expect.

Tankerini

The bartletts are actually the anthias I was looking at or the Dispar's. Just trying to find out which of them is the smallest once fully grown and the minimum group I can keep them in. Any advice?

I did'nt even give the chromis a second look when I was first looking at buying fish but I think with the right lighting they can look great so maybe 3 will be good in my tank.

Tankerini

LOL yeah definitely wont be able to have a massive shoal of fish in my tank for that kind of display, as long as they stick together most times I'll be happy. Or maybe I'll stick a predator in the tank, though that could work out expensive.

Interesting I did'nt think the anthias were larger than the chromis? Thought they were relatively small fish? Different info on sizes from different sites kind of makes it hard to judge how many fish to fit in tank.

Slug

Well not always in size, but they act larger from what i've seen. Can get pretty pushy.