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Tryin to decide what to stock my FOLR 75 gallon,I already got a yellow tang in there. Theres about 80 lbs of livre rock and the tank has been cycled for alomst a month now.
Was wondering if this badboy would work in a 75 and anybody every kept one?

You will very rarely see on in a lfs that is healthy...and even if you do find one, sticking it in the tank with the tang would IMO be a mistake. Burrfish tend to get sick fairly easily and are hard to treat for disease because they dont tolerate meds very well at all. IMO you are asking for trouble sticking it in a tank with an ich magnet.

Chilomycterus shoepfi hits 10 inches in length. That's one BIG fish for a 75 gallon marine setup.

I'd be thinking of a 150 as more suitable housing for one of those. Especially if it's going to share the tank with something else.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

I agree with Calilasseia for when the fish gets bigger. Most here in the states anyway arrive very very small. I think the biggest one I have seen come in off of a wholesale list has been just a little smaller than a golf ball, so it would be ok in a 75g for awhile atleast.

Trouble is DRO, marine tanks take ages to set up and stabilise if the task is performed correctly, so as to minimise stresses on the fishes when they arrive. So if I were intent on keeping something like this, I'd start in advance by asking what size it was going to be, and plan the aquarium for that right from the very start, so that I wouldn't have to set up a new aquarium once it started growing. Which is why, if ever I am able to afford to set up a marine aquarium in my present home, I'll be looking at small fishes for the stock - Dwarf Angels, small Blennies & Gobies, that sort of thing. Save the big fishes for the day when [1] I win the Lottery [2] my books are published and become million sellers [3] I pull off a successful gold bullion robbery.



Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Eh...A few months is all that's necessary to get a saltwater tank reasonably stable if you know what you're doing. If he decides to upgrade, this way he'll have a 75 gallon tank....perfect for a nice reef setup.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Exactly Matty - a few months.

Bad enough getting a SW setup ready for fishes when it's something you've planned a year in advance and you don't have any SW fishes waiting for it. At least it is if you want the job doing properly so that when the fishes go in, it's ready and habitable for them. Personally I'd prefer to do such SW setting up without the additional pressure of knowing I've a potential tank buster growing away in another aquarium that will one day start knocking on the glass saying "Give me a bigger home!"

After all, if I was going to invest the best part of £2,000 setting up a SW aquarium, I'd want to make sure that it stood a decent chance of success before launching into it. Which is why I'd plan ahead for specific fishes, settle upon an aquarium size that would last them well into their adult lives without needing an upgrade, then start planning the logistics of setting it up. With, of course, suitable backup choices of fishes filling similar niches in case my first choices weren't available, an issue complicated by the fact that the order in which you introduce certain marine fishes to a new aquarium can have a critical effect upon their integration. Spine Cheeked Clowns, Premnas biaculaatus, are a prime example. If an individual is the first fish in the aquarium, it assumes a dominant behavioural mantle and throws its weight around with subsequent occupants. Put it in last, and it becomes the submissive, timid fish that everything else in the aquarium bullies mercilessly. Quite a bit of juggling to do with stocking and furnishings is required for successful integration of some fishes in a SW setup even when it's operational from the filtration standpoint.

Size isn't everything either. Pseudochromis porphyreus, known as the Strawberry Gramma in some circles despite the fact that it's actually a Dottyback, is a case in point. The specimens on sale at my nearest marine dealer's are tiny when they're in stock. Don't let that fool you for a moment - this fish is feisty beyond belief, and will happily square up to much bigger fishes and argue over who gets the tastiest food morsels!


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Yeah, I understand, and agree Cali, I'm just saying that could be a nice reef tank in the future. But don't make it sound impossible to upgrade, people do it all the time. As long as you know it has to be done and are willing and prepared to do it, it will work out fine. Personally, I've never gotten to choose the fish I want, then get the aquarium that fits. It's always the other way around for me. Stuck with a 30G tank - occelaris clowns, small wrasse, and a goby.

However, I'm not sure our friend is still following along anywho..... No reason to end a good discussion though.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

Oh, for some people Matty, upgrading to a new bigger aquarium then deciding what to convert the smaller one to can be fun. I just happen to be the kind of person who likes things to be stable for long periods of time - which is why my Panda Fun Palace hasn't changed in major essential details (other than the restock of Cardinals after the October 2005 wipeout) since it was set up in 1994. It's been, throughout that time, a home for Characins, Corys and Otocinclus, with a brief spell in 1995 featuring a pair of Rams (that turned out to be two males, who promptly set about beating each other up and had to go) and one in 1999 featuring Siamese Algae Eaters brought in to destroy thread algae (which they did with frightening efficiency!). So, if I'm the kind of person who tends to be that conservative with a freshwater aquarium, you can imagine I'm not going to be chopping and changing any saltwater system I set up in a hurry!

Of course, if I had a LOT more money than I have now, I'd probably have more leeway for experimentation, and might branch out more. Even so, given that saltwater aquaria require a LOT more maintenance and careful planning than freshwater if they're going to be successful, I'd probably still adopt a conservative approach even if I had a fortune to spend on the project. Namely, settle upon a species list and stick to it so that I wasn't setting myself up for any major surprises.

Mind you, the purchase price of many marine fishes (particularly the ones I want!) tends to mitigate against chopping and changing stocking lists too. Where I live, a Flame Angel costs £75, and since that's one of the species on my marine "wish list", and constitutes a major stocking investment on my current budget, I'd probably build the aquarium around that and compatible companions if I was able to set it up. It'll be a while before I can contemplate taking delivery of another of my "wish list2 fishes - Pygoplites diacanthus - and if ever I am able to set up an aquarium for one of those, again it'll be the star centrepiece around which everything else is planned.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Even so, given that saltwater aquaria require a LOT more maintenance and careful planning than freshwater if they're going to be successful

Careful planning yes, I will agree..but not on the more maintenance part I think this would be an excellent debate. Maybe someone should start a new thread for it