Black Critters

[Nano_Steve]

well im beginning to look at different animals for my next tank. the theme of the tank is going to be all black(sand, silicone, backing, stand/canopy, etc.) so i am looking for info on black colored critters for the tank. here's the list i have so far:

black sailfin blenny
black clown goby
black/white clown fish
neon goby(blue)
yellow neon goby
black angler
black tang

black sun coral

are there any other fish/corals that are pretty much purely black that i havent listed? kinda a weird post i know but i think once i get it up and running this theme will look pretty spiff! :D

-steve

ps does anyone have any experience with anglers? id really like to get one of these guys but i dont want him eating a clown goby or anything.

[zhorne]

I had an all black angel for a while. I think it is called a Nox or Midnight angel. It is a dwarf angel and ate well. It had an infection when I got him and I was only able to keep him alive for a couple of months, but he was a cool looking fish.

[Nano_Steve]

thats true! i forgot i had seen that also. ive read they nip at corals though? did u ever have a problem with it nipping at your zoos or clams?

-steve

[zhorne]

No, that was never an issue. He stayed hidden for the first couple of weeks and then really challenged my false perc for control of the tank. Cooler heads prevailed and all was great. He ate anything I put in tank.

I didn't have any clams at the time so I don't know if he would have been tempted.

[Nano_Steve]

did you add the perc after you had the angel or before? did you happen to have sps when you had the angel? ive been interested in getting a dwarf for some time now and since i dont have clams anymore either i thought i might give it a try.

-steve

ps did it ever have probs with other fish smaller than it?

[Pernelf]

Steve, is that a typo on Blank Angler? If not, he's going to gobble up a lot of your smaller fish sooner or later.

[brewercm]

French Angel. They have quite a bit of black in them.

[Nano_Steve]

its not a typo, i actually put a post script asking about them. ive read they eat anything smaller than they are but i think they are soooo cool! i guess itll be a toss up when it comes time to order fish(1 angler or 2clown gobies) the other fish i have planned are larger so they shouldnt have a prob.

i will be doing lots of research before any combination is chosen.

-steve

btw ill be wanting to sell or trade my existing fish, does anyone know anyone else with any of the fish on the list(is that enough "any"'s :P )

[RobertG]

Steve, what fish do you have?

[Nano_Steve]

ocellaris clown
HUGE dragon goby
med. lawnmower blenny
3 adult engineer gobies(cant decide whether i wanna keep them) i love the black they have but they mess the rockwork up pretty bad.

-steve

[MikeP]

black sailfin blenny - Had one, they get large and will color shift to bright yellow as adults - need large amounts of film and filamentous algae to thrive.

black clown goby - will annoy some corals with their perching behavior.

black/white clown fish - Check on this - several varieties , the 'Onyx' Ocellaris clown, A. poiymnus (Black sadlleback clowns - good fish but pugnacious and get large - Prof has the pair I used to have), A.latezonatus (Awesome fish but get very large and are really a temperate species, prone to illness and rare)

neon goby(blue) - Cool fish, none of mine have lived more than a year or two though

yellow neon goby

black angler - Like many anglers it can color shift depending on what's in your aquarium - it may end up changing to green, brown etc.

black tang - expect to pay at least $200 bucks for one of these , otherwise cool fish - check www.themarinecenter.com for pics.

black sun coral - Tubastrea micracantha [/i Have to be fed obviously, apparently a bit more finicky than the orange [i] Tubastrea faulknerii



Steve - Notes above on what I know about some of these.

[zhorne]

I had one pocillpora and one acro in the tank with the angel at the time and never had an issue that I know of.

[Nano_Steve]

wow guys! thats some great feedback yall have given me! thanks so much!!! :D

ive read about the clown gobies and their breeding habits. im kinda worried about that since my corals are all frags right now anyways. we'll see, ive still got 2 months to make up my mind :P

thanks again all, steve

[GaryP]

The normal life expectancy of neon gobies is only about one year. They are a short lived species.

I think the black tangs are even more expensive than $200. I think someone had a post several months ago where someone saw one for over $1000.

Gary

[Nano_Steve]

well its suffice to say that either of the two cost(200-1000) are out of my budget :D and i doubt i will be paying that much to put one in a 33 gallon tank :P. on the other hand i do believe i will be getting a nox angel because of their size and the fact that they are free-swimmers.

ive heard that neon gobies mate quite a bit within that year lifetime though, has anyone had any luck with their's mating? if so were you able to keep any of the fry alive?

-steve

[GaryP]

Steve,

I did a quick check and I was wrong. Small black Tang's start at about $220, if you can find them. They are usually only handled by the "rare" fish guys. Anytime you hang the word rare on any critter, the price jumps up.

Gary