Lysmata Amboinensis (Doctor Shrimp)

The Skunk Cleaner Shrimp is probably the most sought after of the common cleaner shrimps simply because it really does clean fish. They will setup a "cleaning station" on top of a section of the live rock and will wave their antennaes until a larger fish stops by and they commence their cleaning tasks. What exactly are they cleaning you may be wondering? Well, they are looking for small parasites (i.e. marine ich) and dead tissues. They will probe all over the fish, along the gills and sometimes even inside the mouth of the fish removing the parasites and dead tissues.

They should do fine if you want to keep them in multiples but they should not be kept with more aggressive fish species such as Hawkfish, Lionfish and Triggers who may go after them.

Feeding them is relatively easy because they will eat nearly any meaty type of fish food that you put in the tank. You just need to ensure that they are getting their fair share. They may even take flake foods once they realize they can eat flakes.

The Skunk Cleaner shrimp is usually very hardy if they have been acclimated slowly. It's recommended to acclimate them to your aquarium water over a period of an hour or more to avoid pH shock. Don't be alarmed if you look in your tank one day and see what appears to be a dead shrimp. Look around the tank and if you see that the shrimp is indeed still alive, then what you're looking at is the exo-skeleton that they shed every once in a while. You will need to periodically add an iodine supplement to the water because they use iodine in building their new exo-skeleton.

Diodontidae (Balloon Fish)

The Spiny Porcupine Puffer Fish is an odd looking fish that has the obvious ability to inflate with water when threatened. They can also inflate with air if removed from the water and this can damage them internally. To prevent this from happening try to scoop or direct them into a bag when moving them. Try not to use a net to move them.

In the ocean Porcupine Puffer Fish can often be found in small groups but replicating this in the home aquarium can be foolish because of their potential adult size and because they can be one of the dirtier fishes to keep. They can reach 12 inches (30 cm) or more so you'll need to have a larger tank, preferrably 100 gallons (380 liters) or larger. For most hobbyists, keeping multiple Porcupine Puffers would not be a good idea.

For tank mates for your Porcupine Puffer Fish, look into the tangs and wrasses. Smaller fishes and crustaceans may become Porcupine Puffer dinner. So that eliminates them as a choice for the reef tank setup.

Porcupine Puffer Fish eat crustaceans in the wild and will accept most types of marine fish food including frozen, freeze dried, vitamin enriched flakes and live foods. Small pieces of fresh shrimp and clam can be chopped up and given. Give them a variety of foods but mostly meaty items for optimal health.

They can be particularly prone to getting saltwater ich (cryptocaryon) so you will need to take proper pre-cautions and use a quarantine tank before introducing them into your main tank. It can be a good idea to let them sit in the dealer's tank for a week or two before bringing them home. This will give you them a chance to recuperate from the sometimes long journey to the dealer's tank and it gives you a chance to watch for any sort of outbreaks before you buy them.

Paracanthus Hepatus (Blue Tang Doris)

Along with increasing the popularity of Clownfish, that movie could also be credited with popularizing the Blue Tang as well. "Hey look, it's Dory from finding Nemo!"

The Pacific Blue Tang is a member of the surgeonfishes and is one of the most active swimmers of the available tangs. They will need at least a 75 gallon tank (284 liters), preferrably larger, to allow for adequate swimming space. They can be fairly hardy once acclimated but will not do well in a tank that has not completed the aquarium nitrogen cycle. You will also need highly oxygenated water provided through increased surface agitation (multiple powerheads) and/or the heavy use of air stones.

This surgeonfish has many different common names including - Pacific Blue Tang, Blue Surgeonfish, Palette Surgeonfish, Regal Tang, Hippo Tang, Flag-Tail Surgeonfish and some others. Hopefully this makes you want to use the scientific name when researching and asking about this fish. They are remarkably colored with black, yellow and blue markings and are sure to bring lots of activity to the right tank.

Be careful handling this tang with a net because they can get caught easily in the net. If this happens, gently and slowly move the net back and forth in the tank water. Eventually they should relax their fins and come out of the net.

They will probably not do well with other surgeonfish, especially other Blue Tangs, unless the tank is really large, 100 gallons (379 liters) or larger. If you really have a strong desire to keep multiples, you can try to introduce them all at the same time, but have a back up plan ready. This tang is one of the more peaceful of the bunch and may get picked on by other tangs that are already in the tank. A lot of territorial aggression can be determined not only by the size of the tank but also by the order of introduction into the aquarium.

They primarily feeds on marine algae and having lots of live rock in your tank will provide plenty of grazing opportunities in between meals. Try to give your Blue Tang a varied diet and supplement their diet with marine seaweed using a veggie clip to prevent the colors from fading in this fish.

This tang should be relatively disease resistant once acclimated but you still need to take proper pre-cautions and use a quarantine tank before introducing them into your main tank. Keep them in the hospital tank for two weeks or so and watch for obvious saltwater diseases, such as marine ich.

Premnas Biaculeatus (Maroon)

The Maroon Clownfish (Premnas biaculeatus) has a maroon body with 3 vertical white stripes or lines on its body. There is also a gold stripe variety that comes from Sumatra and the gold stripe is usually a little more expensive. This fish may be one of the most aggressive of the clownfishes. They will not get along well with any other clownfish in the same tank unless they are a mated pair. Even hobbyists keeping them in very large aquariums have reported aggression amongst the maroon clown fish and the other clowns in their tank. They do have the same characteristic swimming style as other clowns and are really interesting to watch.

This is reportedly one of the easier marine fish to breed and they have been successfully breeding in home tanks even without a host anemone present. This is good to know because their host anemone (E. quadricolor) requires intense aquarium lighting (metal halides) to be kept alive for prolonged periods of time. Many hobbyists can't afford the metal halides needed for the anemone but should be able to afford a maroon clown which can range anywhere from $15 - $25 USD.

Getting them to eat standard aquarium fish foods shouldn't pose a problem because they are fairly good eaters. In the wild they eat zooplankton and sometimes algae. Give them a nice variety of marine fish foods such as vitamin enriched flakes, frozen marine preparations and every once in a while, live foods.

Unfortunately, Maroon Clownfish are not all that saltwater fish disease resistant and you will need to use a quarantine tank before introducing them into your main tank. Keep them in the qt tank for two weeks or so and watch for obvious saltwater diseases, like marine ich. Be especially careful with any medications you use with this fish. They will not tolerate high levels of copper based medications!

We have a maroon clown fish pair that hosts with a bubble tip anemone. At feeding time, they will bring back food (usually flake fish food) to the anemone. If you have shrimp, such as the cleaner shrimp, be advised that these shrimp are good at taking food from the anemone. The clownfish would bring the food to the anemone and then the shrimp would scamper up into the anemone and remove the food! When this happens we drop in a few more flakes for the clowns to give to their host anemone. It's very cool to watch the clownfish feeding their anemone.

Amphiprion Ocellaris (Nemo)

The Clownfish is probably the most popular saltwater fish species today and one of the reasons that many people want to get into the saltwater hobby. The Disney movie Finding Nemo probably has a lot to do with the incredible popularity of this fish. Clownfish have a somewhat unique way of swimming. They don't swim like other fish, they waddle and it kind of reminds you of a happy dog when it comes up to greet you. The orange, white and black coloration on the Ocellaris is strikingly beautiful. The Ocellaris Clown is often confused with the True Percula Clownfish because the two species look very similar. The Ocellaris has very thin black bands around the white stripes whereas the True Percula has much wider black bands on the white stripes. They will take almost every type of marine food available and can be very easy to keep.

Many believe that you can't keep a clown fish without their host anemone. This is not true. You can keep them without their host anemone and many have reported success with breeding them even without having their host anemone present. Because many breeders are having success breeding them, tank raised clowns are readily available. In fact, you are generally much better off buying a tank raised clown than a wild one because the tank raised fish tend to have better survival rates and should acclimate more quickly. Tank raised clowns usually cost slightly more than the wild ones but if they adapt better and live longer, it's worth it.

The host anemones that are found in their natural environment of the clownfish can be difficult to care for in captivity and are not recommended for the saltwater novice. Very high output aquarium lighting such as metal halides is often required.

Chrysiptera Parasema (Yellow Tailed Blue Damsel)

The Yellowtail Blue Damselfish is sometimes confused with the Azure Damselfish (Chrysiptera hemicyanea) because they do look very similar. The Chrysiptera hemicyanea has more yellow on its body than the Chrysiptera parasema, which just has the yellow on its tail. This damsel is usually better kept in groups of 3 or more because they can become very territorial if kept singly. This is probably one of the least aggressive of all the damsels, but can still be aggressive nonetheless. Try putting your arm in the tank to perform tank maintenance and you'll see what we're talking about.

The Yellowtail Damselfish is particularly hardy and many hobbyists will use them to cycle a new tank. Using them to cycle your tank is not recommended because it is very cruel to the fish. A better, more humane way to cycle your saltwater tank would be to use live rock. As always, do not keep them with fish large enough to view them as a nice snack.

Yellowtail Blue Damsel will go after most fish food including vitamin enriched flake food, frozen, freeze dried and live foods.