Opinions Please

Catpicklesdog

Catpicklesdog

Hindsight is a wonderful thing!
Feb 25, 2007
4,210
0
0
55
Telford, UK
Real Name
Alison
I've recently been doing some reading on lawnmower Blennies (Salarias fasciatus). I've had mine for nearly 4 years and I purchased way before I started doing any research into my tankmates - i.e can I have that fish, yes you can, thank you, stick it in a bag please. Now that I'm trying to write profiles on all my fish and thought I would dig around different articles and what I'm finding has surprised me.

General consensus seems to state that they are extremely terratorial, yet I would say that Grumpy is the softest fish in my tank and forever being picked on by other tankmates. He always swims away, never attacks back. I've also read that if you want to RISK keeping one with tangs and other algae eaters you should add the blenny last. (Mine was in there way before my Tang and I've never had an issue). I've also read that they may nip at stony coral and clam mantles (granted I don't have a clam - yet ) but I've never seen him go for anything!

Do I have a one in a million "nice" lawnmower blenny or would others agree that they are one of the more friendlier species of fish????
 
I wouldn't say mine is "mean" or even territorial... it doesn't pick fights with other fish or anything, and no one picks fights with him.. but he is very rude. Mine nips at my green clove polyps all the time (the only coral he nips at), and anytime I feed my Mandarin he will come down and just sit right on top of my mandarin. Doesn't attack it or anything.. just swims over and plops down right on top of him. I always gotta "shoo" him away when I feed my mandarin.

One blenny is enough for me in my tank, I would never think of adding another, and a Tang is out of the question for me due to my tank size.

Thats my experience. I do not have, nor have ever had a clam myself so I can not comment on that.
 
Ace, you have GOT to post a photo of that. Sounds pretty hilarious.

My LMB is pretty friendly too. He just hangs out in a hole for most of the day. He takes a fair bit of abuse from the Kole tang, but if he's hungry he doesn't run. He's pretty easy going overall.
 
Honda, my lawnmower, is really a sweetheart as well. He is the last fish and even the goby went after him when he was first added to the tannk. It was really rather comical, he went into one of George's caves and then came flying out being chased by a rather large mouthed snapping goby. He learned his lesson and they are friendly now. Butters the tang was in the tank before him and Honda waits his turn at the algae clip.

So in my personal experience he has been a model citizen. I do disagree with recommendations I read about them being suitable in a 20g. Honda makes use of most of the tank.
 
See, this is what I'm getting told. So far everyone I know who has a LMB (apart from Ace) says they're really easy going. Mine was the complete opposite to Ace's, it was my mandarin (Paisley I) that used to sit on the blenny!

Time to change the records for LMB's everywhere me thinks:grinyes:
 
The one I have now is very nice, but the one before him was a MONSTER. I got a dimond back gobby and he killed it in less than a hour. I spent more time acclimating the dang thing than it spent in my tank. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

~~Ange
 
Grins said:
Viva la Salarias fasciatus!
Click to expand...
Gesundheit!:D
My blenny is quite peaceful to. He buddied up with my coral beauty when she (?) was added to the tank, and has only shown some aggression one time towards my new half black angel. But they have since worked things out.
Robbie
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom