Fish FOR the beginner

[MonoSebaelover]

By request (and I have been wanting to do a part two to the Not for beginners thread) here are fish that ARE FOR the beginner! Enjoy!

Damsels- pretty much can't kill them, small, hardy and aggressive little fish. Best as one of the last additions to the tank. Size two to twelve inches (average two to four inches)

Clownfish- just about all species are extremely hardy (especially all the CB ones) that are highly common now days. Colorful, hardy, and disease resistant. Think Nemo ! Size is three to seven inches (average is four to five)

Basslets (Royal Gramma, Black Cap) Common in fish stores (black cap demands a higher price and is hardier due to better capturing practices). Small hardy colorful fish that have good appetites. Royal Grammas can be tricky depending on how they are captured but the vast majority are good aquarium residents. Size is three to four inches

Assessors and Comets (Marine Bettas) Extremely hardy and interesting fish. Assessors aren't too common in the industry but when they are, are excellent fish to have! Size is three inches (for assessors to 9 inches for the Comet.

Basslets of Serranus genus (Lantern, Tobacco, Harlequin, Chalk) all hardy not as brightly colored but do well in captivity and are pretty laid back except for their mouth size in comparison to their body. Size is two inches (Lantern) to seven inches (Tobacco)

Dottybacks/Pseudochromis (Neon, Fridmani, Strawberry, etc) Very brightly colored fish that have quite a bit of attitude for such a small body . Best to add as one of the last fish but are hardy and many are CB now. Size is two to six inches (average is three to five inches).

Hamlets- essentially small brightly colored groupers. Very hardy but they do have very large mouths so be careful not to add too small of tankmates. Size is right about 5 inches for all species.

Squirrelfish- not too commonly see in the hobby anymore but they are very hardy and primarily nocturnal so you won't see them too much but they are peaceful hardy fish. Size is six to twelve inches.

Cardinalfish (Bangaii, PJ, etc) Cardinals are small hardy fish that primarily like to float in the water column. They are very disease resistent and are super hardy now that most are CB. Great beginners fish! Size is three to five inches.

Snowflake and Chainlink Eel- for the Eel enthusiasts, these are both great beginner eels but don't put with gobies as you will just have the eel left. Do grow rather large and are huge waste factories so be sure to have good filtration. Size is two feet to three feet.

WRASSES-

Flasher- great attractive fish that are fun to watch especially when you have a male and they "flash". Very hardy and disease resistant. Great choice for beginner. Size is two inches to about four inches.

Halichoeres sp (Yellow "Coris", Ornate, Dusky, Radiant) all stay relatively small and are great active hardy wrasses. Good hearty eaters! Size is from three inches to seven inches.

Sixline/Fourline- Probably the most commonly kept wrasse in the home aquarium, sixlines are great at controlling bristleworms and other small organisms in the reef aquarium. They are very hardy, inquisitive little wrasses that spend most of their day searching the live rock for food. Size is three inches.

Thalassoma Wrasses (Lunare, Hardwick, Rainbow/Mexican, etc) these are my favorite wrasses and I often joke about running these guys over with a semi and they are still perfectly healthy. VERY good hardy wrasses (are a bit bigger and highly active so need at least a four foot tank) that are fun to watch and are always interested on what humans are doing. Size is five inches to twelve inches.

Gobies (Shrimp, Clown, Neon, and Engineers) all are good hardy gobies that are shy and peaceful so should not be kept with overly boisterous fish. All are very common in aquarium stores and make great aquarium residents. Size is one inch (neon and others) to twelve inches (engineer).

Blennies (Smiths, Forktail, Midas, Bicolor) all do great in home aquarium especially the Midas and Bicolor which are both pretty common in aquarium stores. Utilize a hole in the rockwork as their home and don't stray too far from the hole but are good interesting unique fish that add personality to the tank. Size is from two inches to about five inches.

Dartfish (Firefish, Purple Fire, Bar Goby, Scissortail Goby, Curious Wormfish) these are probably my favorite fish for the beginner as they are SUPER hardy, interesting and colorful and are good eaters. Plus they are common in most aquarium stores (except the curious worm). Great all around beginners fish! Size is two inches to six inches.

Huma/Blue Throat/Niger Triggers- all are good hardy beginner Triggers (Nigers adult size will be a deterant for some) that are disease resistant but are semi/aggressive so shouldn't be kept with small gobies, etc. Size is nine inches to nineteen inches

That is a brief list of commonly available fish that are good for beginners, feel free to add ones you think I missed ...Enjoy and happy fish keeping!

[FreddytheFish]

Great list!

Also, to add to the eel list, zebra morays are very hardy.

[MonoSebaelover]

I thought about that but they can be pretty tricky to get eating. Once established they are awesome, but just aren't as easy as the Snows or Chains.

[FreddytheFish]

Hmm. I was under the impression that zebras were easier to get to eat than chainlinks, but I'll defer to the expert.

Freddy

[itstheantitang]

To add to the damsels, many become very aggresive as they get older. People on reefcentral have a particular hate for them, I have noticed. Such practices for getting them out include using fish hooks.

Among peaceful damsels are the green and blue chromis. They are a hardy, peaceful, easy to keep, schooling and pretty group of fish.

[FreddytheFish]

Also, mixing damsels can be dangerous. You generally can't have two in the same tank, and I know there are certain guidlines for keeping more of them. Unfortunatley, I don't know them...

[joe 09]

how about rabbit fish, a onespot foxface .they are very peaceful and hardy.i have one in my tank from the start.

[zanzimog]

Originally Posted by joe 09

how about rabbit fish, a onespot foxface .they are very peaceful and hardy.i have one in my tank from the start.

Good addition. If you have the space, rabbbitfish are hardy, colorful and active.

can somebody second the hardyness of the black cap basslets? I think it's about $75 for one so I don't want to rush into getting one.

[joe 09]

a good book to get is marine fishes by scott w. michael it small enough to carry in your pocket.he has that fish rated with an aqurium suitability index of 5, that is the hightest.

[Zoolander]

Thanks for that info, just ordered the book online.

[Chill]

The only problem with Damsels is their aggression might impact future choices for your tank. This coupled with some fish stores promoting them as the fish to cycle your tank with leaves some unsuspecting beginners with a tank that's hard to add new fish to.