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FAQs on Banner Butterflyfishes Selection
Related Articles: Heniochus Butterflyfishes,
Related FAQs:
Banner Butterflyfishes,
Heniochus Identification, Heniochus
Behavior, Heniochus Compatibility,
Heniochus Systems, Heniochus Feeding,
Heniochus Disease, Heniochus
Reproduction, Chaetodonts:
Butterflyfish Identification,
Butterflyfish Behavior,
Butterflyfish Compatibility,
Butterflyfish Selection, Butterflyfish
Systems,
Butterflyfish Foods/Feeding/Nutrition,
Butterflyfish Disease, Henis are
best kept with easygoing tankmates. | 
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Heniochus problems 7/9/08
Dear Crew;
i have been reading
your site for the past few months now and even though i consider myself
an expert in the keeping of fish i thoroughly enjoy reading your
articles.?
<Me too>
Well i do have one question though and it
pertains to the Heniochus species of marine butterflies.?
<?>?>
While i have no problems with other members of the family i cannot keep
Heniochus acuminatus for anything and i am told that they are one
of the easier member of the family to keep.?
<Can be>
The last set
of three that i purchased only made it three days.?
<Mmmm>
I
purchased three medium fish approx 3-4 inches long and placed them in my
quarantine tank.
All was well, they got along great, were very active
and ate well.? I fed them mysis shrimp, and frozen algae and they took
both with no problems, that night i fed them oc pellets soaked in
SeaChem vitality and again they ate like champs.? The next
morning
one of the three was not active and hanging out near the tank bottom, i
looked him over and could not find any
problems with the fish.? He
did however take some mysis shrimp as did they other two.? By the next
morning the fish was
dead and the other two did the same thing as the
dead one hanging out near the bottom and not being active as before.
Both were dead on the third morning.? Now the particulars, i did a
freshwater dip on all three with HydroPlex, at different times.? They
had no visible signs of parasites or damage on their body and acted
great, i treated the tank for bacteria once the second two showed
symptoms, i used ruby reef products for that as well.? Water quality was
8.3 ph, 0 ammonia, nitrites and nitrates.? I keep live rock in the
quarantine tank and performed a water change before treating.? What is
the problem? oh yea the quarantine tank is a 56 gal and had no other
inhabitants except for snails and a few hermits.? i have never seen a
fish decay so quickly from being active and eating to death as what
happened to these three.? Am i overlooking something? thanks in advance
for you answer
<I don't think that these losses have anything to do
with you, your efforts... But cumulative stress, challenges of capture,
holding, and shipping of these specimens. I would try again... perhaps
making sure the new trials had some time to 'rest up' at your dealers
for a good two-three weeks before continuing on to your protocol listed
above. I have dealt with this species on many occasions... as a
collector, wholesaler/transhipper, retailer... and it is one of the
several species that "comes in good" or not... with little to do to save
it from dying anomalously. Bob Fenner>
Grouping requirements of H. acuminatus – 04/1/08
Hello to
whomever is answering today,
<<Hello, Andrew today>>
I am
seeking your advice on adding a Heniochus acuminatus, aka Black and
White Bannerfish for those reading FAQs. I've read all articles and
FAQs on these fish but am still unsure about grouping. I've read
that the H. diphreutes is the one that is a schooling fish. However,
most online and local sellers list the H. acuminatus for sale,
saying they do better in a pair or group.
<<This is a common
observation>>
Is it required that this fish be kept in pairs or
more, or will just one H. acuminatus be happy?
<<As with other
schooling fish, they will always be more active when in pairs or
more>>
My tank is just 92 gallons and I don't want to put 2 in my
tank and risk overcrowding if one will be happy by himself (if there
is room for one at all), since they do grow to a decent size.
<<About 10 inches>>
I currently have 3 bluegreen chromis, 2 b/w
aquacultured ocellaris clowns, and 1 Cryptocentrus leptocephalus
(Pink and Blue Spot Watchman Goby). I would like to also add 1 Six
Line Wrasse, 1 Coral Beauty and a Scopas Tang (last).
<<As it
stands, room only for one in my opinion, however, I would not
suggest adding a single>>
So, Would there be room also for a H.
acuminatus and are they required to be in pairs, or is that just H.
diphreutes?
<<As above, a pair should be added>>
Thank you so
much for your opinion/advice on adding this fish.
April
<<Thanks for the questions, hope this helps. A Nixon>>
Re: Grouping requirements of H. acuminatus 04/01/2008
Thank
you for the response Andrew. I will leave out the H. Acuminatus
since there is not room for two.
<<A wise decision indeed>>
I
have another question. (I'm sure I could come up with more but will
leave it to one!) It is actually the Longnose
Butterfly,
Forcipiger flavissimus, that we were primarily interested in. I've
read tons on them and understand they
are relatively hardy once
acclimated. I've had two die, however, and have never had a fish
loss prior to these two
once they were acclimated. The first one
was a heater malfunction. The second one got ich really bad, very
quickly
and died. I'm guessing my problem is that my QT tank is
only 10 gallons. On one of the FAQ pages I read someone's opinion
was to do a freshwater dip (with Methylene? Malachite?) and place it
in the main tank because that size QT would
stress them out too
much. Then also, someone else said no, definitely QT the fish. So
I'm unsure of what to do. I generally Qt all fish for 4 weeks,
longer if they have a problem, but am having a difficult time with
the Longnose Butterfly. I would like this to be my large fish for
the tank and will leave out others in order to have one I just can't
stand the thought of having another one die. So, what is your
opinion, FW dip and place in main tank? Or Run the full 4 week QT in
a 10gallon tank? Thank you so much!!*~*April*~*
<<FW dip and a 4
week QT in the 10g, certainly. Monitor closely>>
<<Regards. A
Nixon>> |
Heniochus Are
Happening!
Can you keep two black and white Heniochus that are
not a pair in the same tank? Are these fish hardy? I am not experienced
with these type of fish so I don't know much about them. Thank you!
<Heniochus are better kept in odd numbered lots (3,5,etc.). They do tend
to form a "social hierarchy" in a captive system, so two may be a
problem, with one individual dominating the other. These are quite hardy
in captivity, and feed readily on a variety of foods. They do need a lot
of space to swim, however, as they can reach almost 8 inches in length.
Do check the wetwebmedia.com site for more information on this species.
Good luck! Regards, Scott F.> Heniochus chrysostomus
Hello,
<Hi there>
I have question concerning the genus Heniochus,
specifically Heniochus chrysostomus. In reading the information on the
site about Heniochus under the behavior section, it said they are found
in pairs to shoals of hundreds and should not be kept solitarily.
<H.
chrysostomus is almost always found in pairs... H. acuminatus and H.
diphreutes (which I saw today diving off of Hawai'i) are the species
that mainly occur in shoals>
In dealers stores for freshwater tetras,
they say to have at least 3-6, but in actuality, you should have many
more I believe.
<I agree with you>
What would be the lowest number
of chrysostomus that would sufficiently promote a comfortable
environment for them. The tank size would be 750 gallons.
<Very nice.
A couple, as in just two will be fine>
Thank you for time and
knowledge!! Corey
<And you for your caring. Bob Fenner>
Heniochus diphreutes
Greetings!
<Salutem dicit>
I have a
quick question for you; I'm planning a new system, a 75gallon AGA
tank. I would very much like to keep a small school of Heniochus
diphreutes. Would this be appropriate in a tank of this size? How many
would be feasible, if any?
<Actually a 75 gallon is a bit small for
any more than about two of these fish at adult size, and they are almost
always collected/available as mediums plus. Two will do though and allow
you to have maybe one more fish species of about the same size. Bob
Fenner>
Thanks for your time!
John Re: Heniochus
diphreutes
Thanks for the quick response!
<Welcome>
2
would not make too much of an interesting display. What other schooling
fish could you recommend; ideally id like to have 7 or so. Chromis are
always popular, and I hear that some cardinals school as well.
<Some
species do... not all. The Chromis or other damsels are good choices, as
are a few of the hardier, available Fancy Basses ("Anthias")...>
Also, other tank inhabitants include a pearly Jawfish and two false
clowns.
Thanks for your time!
John
<Glad to share John. Do
give a read over the marine livestock selection FAQs archived on
www.WetWebMedia.com for much more input re your possibilities here. Bob
Fenner> H. acuminatus, sel. dis. 4/14/06
Hi Bob,
<Joseph>
I have a quick question on my 2 newly acquired
H. acuminatus which I bought 2 weeks ago. I picked them up from my LFS
as soon as they were delivered
from a wholesaler.
<Mmm,
generally better to leave most all marines at a dealers a week or
more... with deposit if you "must have them"...>
They are about 3
inches in size and both looked healthy.
They have been in quarantine
since then and during that time I have noticed that one of them
absolutely loves every food I give it: brine shrimp with
Spirulina,
sea veggies, flakes, tiny pieces of shrimp and squid, and Nori seaweed.
This one has maintained a healthy weight. The other fish, however,
will only eat the Nori seaweed and spits out everything else. I would
like it to start eating some fleshy foods. I have noticed that this fish
has
slightly lost a bit of weight. Other than this both fish look
healthy and very happy.
My question is whether I should be concerned
about this fish's eating habits ahead of it's release into the display
tank next week?
<Ummm, a tough one... w/o seeing the actual
specimen. But I would very likely risk moving this/these "Heni's" in the
hopes of furthering the ones appetite... and not worry re the small risk
in disease transmission here>
By the way, this is the first time I
have used a quarantine tank and I now appreciate the benefits it gives
to us in not only preventing disease, but
allowing us to observe the
new animals in a much more tightly controlled environment.
<Ah,
bingo!>
It makes it so much easier to acclimate the fish to the
water chemistry and especially to new foods, which would be a lot
trickier in the
display tank (i.e. size, competitors etc.). Thanks
for the informative articles on this topic!
Thanks in advance,
Joe
<Welcome Joe. Bob Fenner>
Heniochus in the Reef, and QT Clarification - 04/19/06
Dear WWM Crew:
<Hi Sam.>
I really appreciate what you do to
promote the hobby and to keep the world happy and healthy!
<You are
welcome and thank you for the compliments my friend.>
I have been a
good WWM user for months now,
<Awesome!>
totally self-sufficient
and amazed by how many times you've had just the right answers ready and
waiting.
<Great.>
Through all of my research I put
together a nice 75 gallon reef with fuge, sump, all that good stuff.
<Sounds fun.>
The tank is very stable with coral, live sand, live
rock, cleanup crew--even a Borneman anemone that hitchhiked on a frag.
<Cool.>
Now I'm finally permitting myself to begin thinking about
fish.
<I admire your patience.>
A local reefer told
me very matter of factly that the ultimate fish to get would be a
Heniochus diphreutes (pennant banner butterflyfish).
<Well they aren’t my favorite by any means, but they are attractive and
a much better alternative to those interested in Moorish Idols.>
I
have to agree that this is a spectacularly beautiful fish, but I hear
mixed reviews as to whether they'd be reef safe (personality driven?)
<My experience is that they are quite safe with most stony corals (SPS)
but can pick at easier (meatier) targets such as Zoanthus. But I have
seen them exist happily and problem reef in many a reef tanks, but I
still think they are a slight risk.>
and whether one would be happy
in a 75.
<Well that would be the BARE minimum in my
opinion for one of these specimens.>
What's the verdict on this from
your perspective?
<See above.>
Second, as a truly conscientious
aquarist, I am going to setup a QT.
<I’m very glad to hear this.>
Assuming I can have a Heniochus diphreutes, what is the minimum size you
recommend for a QT? Would a 20 gallon work for this?
<Yes depending on the size of the specimen in question.>
And how
does one cycle the QT with an HOB filter to prepare for the fish?
Should I run it first in my sump for a few weeks? If you plopped it in
there, I assume the ammonia would quickly spike. You've never
sufficiently answered how one gets a QT ready for a new occupant. Please
enlighten me!
<Please read this article by past-crew member Steven
Pro, it isn’t found on WWM but I like it A LOT!:
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-10/sp/feature/index.php .>
Again, thanks for all the hard work and the brilliant answers!
<Quite welcome, anytime.>
Sam
<Adam J.>
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