LF Moorish Idol

[GreenSpottedPuffer]

Even if you think 90% of what we keep does not live long (which is not true) that doesn't make it ok to keep fish that have even less of a chance to survive in home aquaria. I would say 20% success rate for Moorish Idols sounds kind of on the generous side.

I personally only know one person who kept one over a year on a diet of sponges. I think his lived 3 years. Again, not a success story by any means.

The ones mentioned above that are still around after 12 years would be a success story but that is so rare.

I don't know why people insist on buying these fish

[fishoholic]

My friend (if memory serves me right) bought a MI from a fellow reefer who had it for awhile. She kept it for about 2 years before it out grew her tank and she sold it to someone else. When she had it, it ate well and was very healthy. Unsure if it is still alive now, but she never had any problems with it.

If you are going to buy one I would make sure it's healthy and eating first.

[Edmonton Eskimo]

Unfortunately "healthy" and "eating" do not always go hand in hand. Although a good sign it does not ultimately ensure success. Many idols eat well for a time and then slowly decline and perish. I'm not in a position to tell anyone what to do I'm only offering friendly advice. To those that are taking the side of "well, other fish die in our tanks too" I believe that to be silly(sorry if I offend anyone). Like I stated earlier most fish that die in our tanks is not because they are a delicate species or difficult to keep. They die because of inexperienced aquarists(which we all were at some point) or simply accidents. In the last few years I have not had any fish deaths due to so called unexplained circumstances. I have lost a couple to disease which I tried and failed to treat which happens to us all. I don't know about any of you but the fish I have would be very hard to kill even if I neglected them for a long period simply because my husbandry skills have improved greatly over the years. Try that with a moorish and see what happens.

[kjcote]

joshua from marine aquaria had a pair of idol's on the weekend when i was there.

[Drock169]

If you do find one, make sure its an indian ocean one, not a phillipines. Indian ocean ones are much more likely to eat prepared food.

[GreenSpottedPuffer]

I hope my posts do not sound too harsh. I am not telling you not to get one...just that you may want to rethink it. And it has nothing to do with your experience or tank, its to do with the dismal survival rate of these fish. I really don't understand why stores still sell these fish.

One of the reasons that a Moorish Idol that eats prepared foods is not necessarily healthy is because most of the foods you are feeding them are the wrong foods and do not get digested properly or just simply do not have the proper nutrition for an idol. They do not eat mysis, flakes or pellets in the ocean. I understand many other fish do not either but many other fish can adapt much easier and better to frozen/prepared foods. Many of the foods we feed tangs for example are formulated to keep a tang nice and healthy.

Again, not saying don't get one, just reminding people to think twice about buying one and hoping that stores will stop ordering them!