Yahoo Answers is shutting down on May 4th, 2021 (Eastern Time) and beginning April 20th, 2021 (Eastern Time) the Yahoo Answers website will be in read-only mode. There will be no changes to other Yahoo properties or services, or your Yahoo account. You can find more information about the Yahoo Answers shutdown and how to download your data on this help page.
Trending News
Emperor Angelfish attacking corals?
I've got a 450litre tank, full set up, halides, skimmer, UV..
got a few fish in there now and my partner collects corals, soft and hard types.
I really really really wanted an Emperor Angelfish, but i hear they tend to attack a reef system as they get older?
I don't want all my lovely corals to get killed off so was wondering if anyone had any experience as to weather they are of the attacking kind?!?!
Thank you
Oh i've been at this for a while..
Allready got a brown tang, a valentini puffer, a foxface, 2 perc clowns, a scooter blennie and a goby... oh and a baby regal tang :)
Oh and Brek i have a 80 litre quarentine tank i think i'm going to have to convince my partner to change it for an emperor tank now :)
7 Answers
- ScooterLv 51 decade agoFavorite Answer
Yep.
Sad to say they do. And no matter what you try to feed them they just won't pack it in. I've certainly never yet been able to bribe them in to leaving things alone and I'll chuck just about anything in for fish to eat to see if it works or not. Though I will say they tend to do it less as they get big bigger - in my own experience the juveniles are terrible for it! I've often wondered if this is because, as they get bigger and stronger, they get much better at taking bigger types of live food.
It's a real bummer because, in adult colours they have got to be one of the best looking fish out there.
That said, I've heard other (reliable) people say they never touched the inverts.
I found this on Youtube. I know it probably isn't what you want to see but watch what the little rat does about 40 seconds in to the clip. They really can keep that up all day long - I've seen them at it. (You might want to mute it - there is some insanely irritating clicking going on in the background):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLk49EPBjqA&feature...
Now compare that to the surroundings in which an adult is kept in:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvkxxstpEmo&feature...
Judging by the way the fish are boldly moving around the tank must be well established. And yet look what is flourishing in the same tank.
Your tank sounds like a seriously sexy piece of kit, BTW
I do so like big ol' tanks :o)
- da banditLv 41 decade ago
Emperor Angelfish will eat or pick on the corals, Angelfishes and Butterflyfishes are related and both are not reef safe. They will eat live rocks and corals along with invertebrates inside of the tank. You can visit www.saltwaterfish.com to see the varieties of angelfishes that may be reef compatible.
However, Some people do chance it anyways, and some succeed at keeping them in a reef tank, and some doesn't. It depends on the temperament and it depends on how well fed you keep these fish.
I have a reef tank, and I got my butterflyfishes to eat the flakes instead of the corals, plus I have a Koran angelfish too, he does pick at the rocks. It's a chance that you are going to have to take if you want it bad.
The rocks will not disappear though, the only things that will disappear will be the organisms and the micro-organisms living on the rocks.
If you can get to train the Angelfish to eat flakes, I wouldn't suggest putting them in a reef tank.
Thanks for asking and good luck............
- 1 decade ago
They are not reef safe. This is not something you want to take a chance with b/c once the fish is in there, of course it would be hard to get out. Every fish, even from the same genus, will act differently, no one can say for sure whether the fish will attack your corals or not, but since they are not reef safe there is a good chance it will. It will nip at stony and soft corals (sessile invertebrates) and clam mantles, but may be kept with small-polyped stony corals and somewhat noxious soft corals.
- 1 decade ago
YES and Emperor angel will eat your live corals, this is part of their natural diet, along with small invertabrates, shrimp, crabs, worms, snails etc... Basically for a reef type tank and Emperor is sadly off the list. But it does give you a great excuse to get another fish only tank so you can enjoy this fish.
Source(s): 20+ aquarium industry experience, hobbyist and fish breeder - How do you think about the answers? You can sign in to vote the answer.
- dAmIAnOOLv 51 decade ago
most "large" angels will attack corals and other inverts if you want a cool fish then chose a tang yellow tang,blue tang and clown tang thse are my favorite tangs ( clows are hard to keep)
or choose a dwarf angel coral beauty angle is a good fish to start with and mayna a foxface lo
- Anonymous5 years ago
no longer purely do angel fish no longer bypass nicely with smaller fish, they do no longer even bypass nicely with different angelfish. they're very aggressive fish via nature. they're definately attacking the guppies. besides, while a million angelfish gets bigger than the different and that they are going to, the better one will probable kill the smaller one.