Small-Medium Sized Schooling Fish

Hi,

I have recently started setting up a 55 gallon SW tank, and am looking for some fish that will school, or at least group, in my tank. They don't have to be coral-friendly, but I would prefer it that way. What I'm planning on so far for stock is:

3 Yellowhead Jawfish

1 Dwarf Angelfish (I haven't decided on a species, but I'm leaning towards the Cherubs)

Assorted cleaner inverts (Snails, shrimps, crabs, the works)

I've been looking at Chalk Basslets, but would like an experienced opinion before I choose. Are Chalk Basslets a good choice? What other species are suitable?

Any help/ideas are welcome and appriciated,

Spencer

TL1000RSquid said:

Some types of Cardinals will group, spotted, yellowstripe I think most with stripe in the name group, 5 line, and a few others.

I agree with greech about the angels, my half black will chase the smaller fish until the female clown comes out to put him in his place.

And have some type of jump proof top if you go with dartfish or they will dart out of the tank.

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I was looking at cardinals as a possibility, specifically the Flame Cardinals. How would they fit with the rest of the stock?

I already plan on using a terrarium mesh top as a jump cover. The holes are about a square centimeter each, so I don't think the yellowheads will be squeezing through that. Would that work?

greech said:

Grammas and basslets will group, or rather harem, but you need to buy them that way (not always easy). Dartfish (fire fish, scissor tails, etc.) will also harem. Small wrasse like flashers look good with one male and a couple of females.

I wouldn't introduce an aggressive angel into the mix if you want groups. Stay away from damsels/chromis as well.

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How do they harem if they are hermaphrodites? Will they just "swap" until they are happy in a harem if I just leave them be?

Also, I'm assuming that a Lantern Basslet wouldn't get along with the group of Chalkies, but will they mind their own business if I set up adequate territory for the Lantern? Or will it bother the Chalkies still?

Thanks,

Spencer

TL1000RSquid said:

Anything more then a mated pair you may run into trouble with Flames, if you like the color red tail cardinalfish (Fowleria Isostigma) is a cardinal thats usually ranges from orangish to reddish and will do good in small groups around the same size maybe slightly bigger 3.5"ish. Not always easy to find but if you have local place willing to special order, or buy online they're available.

Top sounds good anything with 1/4" or smaller squares should work.

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Are there any other cardinals that would group that are Caribbean fish? I'm going to try and keep to Caribbean fish, because of a reef snorkeling trip I took in the Bahamas. I've realized there aren't many Caribbean species as there are Asian species, but I'm going to try. This isn't set in stone, however. I really like the Redtails, so I might just use those.

Also, how much live rock should I use? I'm probably going to pile them up into a big shorter pile rather than a huge cliff, because I don't usually like those formations, and I want to avoid cave-ins from the jawfish burrows. I keep reading different amounts per gallon, and I'm not sure which to believe. I was thinking 50-60 lbs. Would this work? I don't need much, as the jawfish are gonna be primarily in the sand.

Thanks,

Spencer