Can 12 Chromis be introduced at the same time into a 190g?
 

Ok guys, as the header says, I just bought 12 lg chromis to go into my 190g. They will go into qt first, then to the main tank. The DT has been up since mid November, had a velvet issue, so was fallow of fish until Mid March. It currently has a Scribbled Angelfish and an Achilles in it. (I took out the sail fin and Pakistani Butterfly to lessen stress on the Achilles). Once the 12 Chromis are ready, can they all go into the DT at the same time, or do you guys think that could add too much stress to the Achilles or the tank's bio load. The Achilles is 3.5 inches and is shy compared to my old one I had years ago in another tank. (I bought this Achilles from a fellow reefer, that had it for 6 months and it eats pellets, so I could not pass on the chance). I run a UV and a Curve 7 skimmer with a fuge and sump.
All opinions are welcome.

I think that would be no problem they are small fish 190 should handle it

On a side note 12 chromis would look cool in there

you may have a different experience in a nice, big tank.

But IME, Chromis are a great schooling fish in the wild, but become territorial and aggressive in a contained environment.

They will be just fine going in there together, but eventually, very likely that one will become dominant and kill off the rest.

Again, my experience has been in sub 100 gallon systems, so you may have a tank that is large enough to negate any issues.

Maybe some others with more experience with larger tanks can offer some first hand experience.

I agree with gobytron. I had 15 in my 300gal and all was fine for about a month and then they turned into territory control freaks. I even took out the dominant one and another became the dominant. It got to the point that they were bothing my other fish and especially at feeding time. Go figure 3" chromis pushing around a tang, trigger and my foxface.... they do look nice and I've definitely heard of success but you couldnt pay me to put those in my tank again. Mine were the blue green chromis.... The bigger they get the more territorial they get imo.

That's the case with just about any fish. I bought a Clown Trigger the other day knowing full well one day he might go postal and I will have to deal with it but I've always wanted one. He's the size of a quarter and was captive bred so I thought at least I will be able to have him for quite awhile and may not have the psycho switch in his head..

Toss the Chromis in and enjoy.

Short Answer: Yes. Bioload should be fine. They also shouldn't bother the existing tank mates....in theory. They look very cool together schooling and shoaling.

Long Answer: Mentally prepare yourself for disappearing chromis. Whether by aggression amongst themselves, injury, or disease. Long term; from your initial 12, you'll lose approx 4-6. It's what they do. The good news is....they are relatively affordable that you can replace mysteriously disappearing ones if necessary.

Thanks guys for all the input. I had put 7 in my old 125g and in the end 5 lived the 4 years that the tank was up. I am hoping for the same (I'm figuring 2-3 to die due to pecking order fighting), and figure it would be nice to see them schooling. I hope the achilles keeps them on their toes, as was mentioned, the 5 I had in the past schooled less and less as time went on. I was thinking a shoal of anthias would be cool, but they are picky, have extra feeding needs if you get them eating, and cost a lot more.

Chalk Bass were always one of my favorite schoolers...

Not as aggressive as Chromis but still became an issue eventually.

+1