Mandinga Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 I have a little 3.5 gallon nano tank, I just want one fish. Tank is covered. I've always wanted a fire fish, but for some reason never had one. Is a purple fire fish gonna need more space? If so, suggestions on fish options for this size tank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Z Reef Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 That's pretty small, I'd suggest a citron, green clown, or yellow goby. They all stay tiny enough to be ok with a tank that size. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Z Reef Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 Also, if it were me, I'd go with the yellow clown goby. Since we don't have many yellow corals, a yellow clown goby adds a nice bright yellow contrast to the tank. Similar to how many of us like to have yellow tangs in larger tanks (I have 3 myself). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashy Fins Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 What are the dimensions? That seems really small, but then again, they mostly just hover in front of the rock and only swim around a little, usually to catch food. I don't think lack of swimming space would really bother them, but they are a bit big in terms of how crowded the tank might look. If you're going to try a fish that isn't a bottom dwelling goby, a firefish is a probably better choice than some fish I've seen in tanks that small (damsels, six line wrasse, etc.). Mine always stayed in an area about the size I'm imagining a 2.5 gallon tank would be, even though he had more space he could've explored. Probably the only time he left that little area was to check out new fish in the tank, grab food that drifted away, and escape my net. How will you keep up water quality? I sometimes think about setting up a really tiny tank like that for pico fish, but I imagine doing daily water changes and still struggling, because I'm a very heavy-handed feader. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashy Fins Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 Is the idea to avoid bottom dwellers and non-swimming fish, or just that you really want a firefish? The purple gets a little larger than the red (except a larger red one that's from Africa, I believe), and the magnificent (yellow-bodied, Maldives) version of the purple gets a little larger than the standard purple. Even choosing the largest of all, the magnificent (prettiest, in my opinion, and the only one I've kept), I think it could work with attention to water quality, careful feeding, and no other fish. I often see 3" listed as the max size for the magnificent, but 4" is more accurate. I know most will say it's not the best fit, but I also don't see anything especially cruel about it, given the hovering behavior of this particular fish. That's assuming the tank dimensions allow him a little swimming room for when he does want to move about more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashy Fins Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 (edited) These might not be your taste at all, but fish I've personally considered for pico tanks: Yasha goby Gumdrop coral croucher Green banded goby Yellow clown goby Catalina goby (sub-tropical, might limit corals?) Various trimma gobies (hard to find) Ruby red dragonet makes a killer showpiece fish, but you would have to culture pods. Even if trained on frozen, to feed constantly and keep up water quality, pods would be a necessity. Tisbe, the pods they eat, do clean a tank well, so there would be a benefit there, but it's more than most people want to do for a single fish. Edited March 21, 2015 by Flashy Fins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandinga Posted March 21, 2015 Author Share Posted March 21, 2015 (edited) Thanks for the info, I didn't realize they got that big. I plan on doing probably bi monthly water changes, and feeding fairly light. I've just got coral and inverts now. Dimensions are 9"x10"x7" ish...going off memory. That Yasha goby may be the way to go...or maybe even just a damsel lol. Edited March 21, 2015 by Mandinga Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashy Fins Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 Yasha goby would be very cute in there! Likely to be happy in the limited space, as well. That's a favorite of mine and most likely my next fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandinga Posted March 22, 2015 Author Share Posted March 22, 2015 Okay, thanks again I think I'll go with the Yasha, or I will just go fishless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashy Fins Posted March 28, 2015 Share Posted March 28, 2015 ... magnificent (yellow-bodied, Maldives) version of the purple gets a little larger than the standard purple... the magnificent (prettiest, in my opinion, and the only one I've kept)... I often see 3" listed as the max size for the magnificent, but 4" is more accurate. Just realized I typed magnificent every time I meant exquisite. Exquisite is the larger, yellow-bodied purple firefish. Thought I should correct in case someone comes across this info later. I know I end up on old threads via google searches sometimes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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