Tank size for Tangs? An evaluation...

[Diomedes]

Many good points Troy,
With regards to your first question, about trading fish in, and how Tak cannot be a resource for everyone. Well that is true. If each reefer here bought a small tang and raised it to the medium size, without killing it, Tak would have more than enough room in his 10,000 gal...but will he ALWAYS be there? No. So your arguement is sound under ideal and lasting conditions. Your suggestion of planning to provide for your Tang's growth as he matures is an ideal solution - obviously the best and most conscientious. This means at some point buying a ~200-300 gallon system(in my opinion). That truly is ideal, but may not be in the plans for many of us. But the arguement is sound again.

It is great to see that most people do their best to provide for their fish, whether it is by trading them into larger systems, or purchasing systems that are larger. (the difference?)

Then about this photo, and the size issue on the small Paracanthurus hepatus. I found the calculation from Canadian's computer screen to be a little sketchy. I respect what he was trying to prove, but looking at a photo to judge size you would need to know a lot more than just the size of your own monitor. The depth, angle, lighting, filters, lense etc. can all contribute to make a tang look small or large. Canadian's method of determining tang size was full of variable's he couldn't control. period.
I could take a snapshot of a 1 cm tang and make it look larger than a dinner-plate sized Sarcophyton spp. (Please don't aske me too though ;) )
As far as exaggerating what makes us look better, that shot was beneath you Troy. You are a great guy to talk to, full of knowledge, and experience. You don't need to speculate on someone's possible exaggerations.

Also Troy - your quote

"I think the point you make about mimics is interesting although, I don't know that it applies in the way you would like."

Maybe not, and maybe you have read that it is because Centropyge spp. angels are less palatable. So have I...I was just speculating that it might not be that simple... The nature of the theory posed is not meant to bolster my arguement, but to bring up an additional relation in behavior. BTW, I have seen two Centropyge spp. angels scarfed down by two separate groupers (Epinephalus ongus, and Cromileptes altivelis) That doesn't mean that Centropyge spp. are palatable, but they are certainly edible.

As far as grazing fish go, I feel that most reef fish species graze on a number of habitats in the wild.

Yes Doug I agree with you completely. I have kept some Centropyge spp. and I have seen them delight in caves, lush live rock full of diverse life. They like to poke at things, and mine likes to organize all the other fish in the tank. He herds them around, keeping them away from hisfavourite arch (including the juvenile powder blue tang!!) They truly excel in tanks that are suitable for mandarins as well. My Centropyge argi has fluorescent blue streaks along his body, and I attribute that to the diversity of life growing on my live rock.

Diomedes