Saltwater Newbie Here: Adding New Fish to Preexisting Aquarium Setup?

Discussion in 'New To The Hobby' started by Scona, Nov 23, 2015.

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  1. Scona

    Scona Plankton

    Joined:
    Nov 23, 2015
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    Hiya!
    Do feel free to let me know if this isn't the right place for this thread.:)
    I am in dire need of advice on how to add a new fish to a long-time saltwater aquarium that I recently came into ownership of.
    All of the current fish have been in the aquarium "since the beginning", so I am unsure of how to deal with whatever disruption a new (but docile) arrival will cause.
    I have owned the tank four about 4 months now, but it is about 4 years old.
    (Note: This is my first saltwater tank. I am experienced in respect to freshwater, and own 3 freshwater tanks- A South American Cichlid Tank (200 gallons) an African Cichlid Tank (150 gallons), and a miscellaneous Tiger Barb tank with a few Koi mixed in for diversity (100 gallons.)
    Here Are The Tank's Details:
    170 gallon tank: regular sand, 2 large faux coral centerpieces, and a back wall of complex coral caves.
    Readings: All readings (nitrate, nitrite, PH, etc) are pretty much perfect. Only issue is with algae currently from excessive lighting, but that will be fixed with the arrival of an incoming "cleaner pack" (5 emerald crabs, 10 hermits, 5 snails.);)
    Meet the current fish:
    1 Emperor Angelfish (6 inches): The big guy, and with that being said, the hog. He eats everything!
    1 Yellow Tang (5 inches): Friendly, docile.
    1 Blue Hippo Tang (5 inches): The oddball of the tank, but endearing. Likes to lay down on his side on coral or sand to relax, and when happy or excited makes rounds in the tank blowing bubbles and showing off his graceful swimming. A bit of a trickster.:yelrotflmao:
    3 Clownfish (1-2.5 inches): They stick to a back corner of the tank, and seem to operate as a group. Where one fish goes, the other two follow, always. Very docile.
    1 Flame Angel (1.5 inches): Vibrant personality: weaves in and out of coral as though he was in a race against time 24/7. Docile.
    1 Sulfur Damselfish (2.5 inches): Respectful and well acquainted with current tankmates, but hates me and anything unfamiliar with a passion. Meaning: The algae scraper, the net, my hand.... that list could go on and on. The number of times I've been bitten is a number I am shamefully unwilling to disclose.

    Now, my issue is with the Sulfur Damsel.:undecided:
    Originally, the tank was without the back wall of coral- I added it, and when introduced to it, the damsel immediately made it his "domain".
    That being said, he shouldn't have any territorial issues- and yet, decorating the tank, cleaning the tank, and even feeding can be a hassle for me because he apparently perceives me as a threat. He'll come flying out of his little network of caves whenever I approach the tank. No matter what I do he is ready to attack me, and let me tell you, that fish is miniature Jaws. When he bites, it actually hurts.
    Now frankly, that isn't much of an issue for me because he leaves the other fish alone- I am his one and only enemy. We've made it somewhat of a war of dominance and perseverance, so it provides me with some entertainment throughout the day.

    However.... In 2 days I am adding a 1.5 inch Pearlscale Butterfly. While he may be docile, and I may be prepared for his arrival, I seriously doubt that the Sulfur Damsel is as well. His unwillingness to be friendly to the hand that feeds him leaves me completely unprepared for how he will treat the Pearlscale Butterfly, and I have no intention of letting him rip up fins and intimidate the newcomer. :angry:

    Is there any way for me to prepare for whatever problems may arise regarding the Damsel's aggression? :shocked:
    My only no-no is getting rid of the Damsel. While he may be an ******* (pardon my language) and a $5 fish, he is still endearing in his own way, and has behaved himself in respect to other tankmates.

    Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you.


    ~Scona
     
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  3. Va Reef

    Va Reef Giant Squid

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    Welcome to 3reef!

    Try an acclimation box. Unfortunately this is just the nature of damsel fish. I can just imagine him perceiving the butterfly as a threat and going on the attack. Now the butterfly may just find his "place." This is a risk you'll have to take if you want to add new fish, IMO.

    By the way, clownfish are damsel fish and you can come to expect the same behavior as the sulfur damsel from them once they get bigger.

    Also, I'd love to see pictures of your system :)
     
    Scona and DSC reef like this.
  4. Scona

    Scona Plankton

    Joined:
    Nov 23, 2015
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    Hello, and thank you for welcoming me.
    Apologies for the late reply, but being new to this site I had a few navigation issues... Simply could not find this feed again once I closed the tab lol.

    With that being said, I ended up doing something similar to your suggestion... acclimated the Pearl using the drip method, and then placed the box in the tank. I released him a good 4 hours after that, but unfortunately he was attacked immediately.
    Thankfully, days later, he has now been somewhat accepted... the Sulfur Damsel has been sulking in his cave since he realized the Pearl was there to stay.

    I will post pictures later this evening.

     
  5. oldfishkeeper

    oldfishkeeper Giant Squid

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    I missed this when first posted. Glad to hear things settled out. Yes, would love to see those pictures
     
  6. Va Reef

    Va Reef Giant Squid

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    No worries. A good way to find threads is to use the search function at the top right of the site.