Yellow Tang w/ inverts

[Yano]

I want 1 for my new tank, but I have seen on some places say they will pick on small inverts. Is this true? What are your experiences?

[StephenA]

Not that I've ever seen.

[alexwolf]

I have 5, and never seen them pick on anything, except algae and the occasional nip on my squamosa mantle.

[NaCl_H2O]

My Yellow is the least agressive Tang in the tank - got into it a little with my Powder Blue early on, but now they are buds! No problems related to picking on inverts - and eats his share of algae!

[pilot_bell777]

I had one with shrimp, starfish, crabs, and plenty of corals and never had any issues out of him at all. He used to follow my Trigger around like a sick puppy but other than that no issues with the inverts.

[BA]

since they are great for reefs, i would be surprised if any would go after some inverts, but then again anything is possible...

[cailan]

i just got my first one about 2 weeks ago and i haven't seen it picking on anything but algae.

[Yano]

ok, thanks for the replies, I will now sleep easy when I buy a tang later on.

[Ram_Puppy]

you know, I have always kind of wondered, tangs eat algae, and, at least in my tank, and presumably (and from what i have heard) in the ocean algae is always covered with copepods and amphipods, one wonders how 'vegitarian' a tang really is, perhaps it consumes more protien than people think by the secondary consumption of pods on it's food source?

just a thought...

[Instar]

That is brilliant Ram Puppy. I cracked open some live mussels for my butterflies and the tangs all get in there too. I'd say your thought would be reasonable and would be surprised if there wasn't a whole lot of other things in there beside algaes in a wild tang gut. Since they will nibble at and tear into anything thats cut open or dead, its likely they would swallow pods on a weed and incidental planktonic shrimp, etc.

[StephenA]

My purple tang fights my trigger fish for krill everyday.

[Ram_Puppy]

don't make me blush larry! :)