Trigger in sps dominated tank

[Dez]

Anybody have a trigger in an sps dominated tank? I'm thinking about adding a Niger, or Crosshatch, or pinktail trigger. I'm just worried about my clams and crabs, and also water quality. However, my display is 150 gallons but I do have over 300 gallons in water volume.....

Also, I'd like a pygmy angel of some sort, but how to "test" them before putting them in the display to see if they're nippers?

Suggestions appreciated. Thanks.

Des

[globaldesigns]

Most triggers are NOT reef safe... The Blue Throat is probably to most reef safe there is, if you can call it that... You take a chance with all triggers.

I do have a male blue throat in my reef and it has been fine for me. It has been a year so far, hopefully he doesn't change.

[Delphinus]

Blue throats are not bad but the "big 3" reef safe ones are the crosshatch, sargassum, and pinktail. Clams will be fine with any of those but apparently it's hit and miss with the hermits and whatnot. But *supposedly* those big 3 are water column feeders aka planktivores. You can tell by the upturned lips that they're not really meant for picking things off the substrate.

Think Niger's are reasonably safe too, although probably come after under the blue throats if you were to rate them.

Crosshatches are the bomb if you ask me, but pricey, and realistically get too big for your size of tank. After seeing some full grown ones about a year ago, I wouldn't even put them in my 280g.

[Dez]

Thanks guys.....hmmm, I'll have to rethink that one then. I definitely do not want to go catching a trigger cause it's too big. Oh well, should have build a 1000 gallon tank I guess.

Anybody else have experience with "testing" pygmy angels for nipping?

[leducreef]

hey dez i have a niger in my tank he has been fine other than he likes to eat my snails lol

[Dez]

Originally Posted by leducreef

hey dez i have a niger in my tank he has been fine other than he likes to eat my snails lol

Yours isn't an sps tank though right?

[Ellie_A]

We have a blue jaw trigger in our tank. It has many SPS as well as LPS, softies, a bubble tip anenome, clams, starfish, crabs and snails. No problems at all with the trigger, he mostly keeps to himself and doesn't bother the other fish either

[Dez]

YOu think 150 gallons is too small for a trigger? I have over 300 gallon water volume and 5' swimming space...

[Delphinus]

I don't know. It's hard to say. I've seen happy triggers in smaller tanks, so you'd think it would be OK. I was just blown away at the crosshatches - until I saw this pair that was full-size, I had been dreaming that "one day" a pair would be my "showcase fish" in my big tank, but when I saw them, I honestly felt they were too big. That's not to say you can't get them smaller though, so that becomes a judgment call - do you get them and sell them (or upgrade) if/when they outgrow the tank? Or will they sort of stop growing (I've never really understood if that's a truth or not with fish). But this was with crosshatch triggers, which are not cheap anyhow (like, think $600-800 for a pair). But a pair of blue throats is considerably more reasonably priced and I think they are smaller. And I honestly don't think you'd have a problem with them in your tank. I've seen a few tanks in the 90-150g size that were "SPS dominated" and had a pair of bluethroats and seemingly everything was fine, so, ..... I say go for it.

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Blue throat & Sargassum triggers are reef-safe (at least for your corals). Have both & no problems.