Kole tang vs Yellow tang - feeding habits

[marie]

Originally Posted by Lance

Those three should keep your algaes in check. Except for Valonia, my personal scourge.

You can have my foxface, he loves valonia

[wingedfish]

My sailfin tang loves valonia also. Any time I move a rock he is waiting to pounce on any growing in the nooks and crannies.

[fishytime]

Originally Posted by jostafew

For the record I have a 70gal DT with lots of swimming room (light on the rockwork). I know the tank may be a touch on the small size for natural food production but I am OK with supplementing its diet with outside food.

in a 70, I personally would choose one or the other tang.....and I would probably choose the kole......bristletooth tangs are incredible "working" fish.....I would get a blenny of some sort too

[jostafew]

Yeah no, would definitly be one or the other. I think that if i could find a kole with good coloration i'd be happy. Will keep the blenny in mind too though, they seem like they have a lot of charactor (been watching some youtube vids!)

[Hiab422]

Coral Beauty ate hair algae and whatever green algae it could find left the corals alone but sadly lost him to my big clown.

[jostafew]

Just a quick update; I picked up a Kole Tang and am very happy with the decision. I was trolling the big 3 LFS in the area looking for the right fish, and after a couple weeks of watching took a chance on a pale and somewhat thin but otherwise healthy looking specimen. Fortunatly I'd done my homework and new that a stressed tang will appear pale, and since it was surrounded by about 50 yellow tangs and a few other species I figured it was just kinda stressed in the LFS. Sure enough once it settled into it's temporary home (QT) it colored up and began cleaning up the brown film algae in the QT. After a few weeks in the now very clean QT it's moved to the DT and looks great. In my travels I also came across some Tomini tangs which I considered, but decided to stick with the more common (and I felt better understood) Kole tang. Thanks again for the input. I may still do the Blenny but I will watch the food supply for a while before adding another grazing fish.

P.S. for the first couple days it was harassing and being harassed by the Azure Damsel, but they've settled in now and everyone is getting along.

[naesco]

Originally Posted by jostafew

Just a quick update; I picked up a Kole Tang and am very happy with the decision. I was trolling the big 3 LFS in the area looking for the right fish, and after a couple weeks of watching took a chance on a pale and somewhat thin but otherwise healthy looking specimen. Fortunatly I'd done my homework and new that a stressed tang will appear pale, and since it was surrounded by about 50 yellow tangs and a few other species I figured it was just kinda stressed in the LFS. Sure enough once it settled into it's temporary home (QT) it colored up and began cleaning up the brown film algae in the QT. After a few weeks in the now very clean QT it's moved to the DT and looks great. In my travels I also came across some Tomini tangs which I considered, but decided to stick with the more common (and I felt better understood) Kole tang. Thanks again for the input. I may still do the Blenny but I will watch the food supply for a while before adding another grazing fish.

P.S. for the first couple days it was harassing and being harassed by the Azure Damsel, but they've settled in now and everyone is getting along.

Your choice of a kole over a yellow is a good choice because with the exception of the kole that kinda hangs around, all tangs require swimming room to do what they do best. 6 foot tanks provide that room
Kole tangs may appear to eat algae on the rocks but in order to thrive they require film algae as you have experienced. You can provide them with film algae by keeping the back of your tank 'dirty'. You can also get a bunch of those smooth stones you see for freshwater. Pile them in the corner of your tank and as well as providing a surface for film algae to grow, these pod piles provide safe homes for pods and their little one.
Good Luck

[lastlight]

Originally Posted by naesco

Kole tangs may appear to eat algae on the rocks but in order to thrive they require film algae as you have experienced. You can provide them with film algae by keeping the back of your tank 'dirty'.

Why would the film that grows on rockwork be a different algae than on the glass? The same film covers everything but isn't too visible on the rocks if it's mature rock. My kole works the rockwork ALL day and only occasionally the glass. I'm thinking he's eating something worth all the effort =)

My kole seemed very happy in my 97 (36x24x26) but there's no denying the wy in which he moves around changed in the big tank. I suppose everything's relative but seems much happier.

[naesco]

Originally Posted by lastlight

Why would the film that grows on rockwork be a different algae than on the glass? The same film covers everything but isn't too visible on the rocks if it's mature rock. My kole works the rockwork ALL day and only occasionally the glass. I'm thinking he's eating something worth all the effort =)

My kole seemed very happy in my 97 (36x24x26) but there's no denying the wy in which he moves around changed in the big tank. I suppose everything's relative but seems much happier.

I understand that film algae is found on smooth rock surfaces in the wild and obviously glass in our aquariums. The Kole's mouth is designed to suck the film algae off the glass.s iIf you observe him he has a sucker-type mouth.
Like all fish they will do their best to find what they need and sometimes adopt to aquarium food but ultimately they will start to go downhill if their specific food needs are not met.

[jostafew]

Thanks for the feeding advice naesco, I do leave the back 3 walls "wild" so there's lots of grazing area. Will see what I can do about some smooth stones as well.