Mobile Bay Reef Keepers

Just got a trio of Hawaiian Bicolor Anthias that were Delta Cargo'd in from Honolulu. Pretty excited. Two smaller females and a large alpha female.

Pics soon.

Very nice looking fish. How long will they be in the QT tank? I was in the store a few months back and was going to buy a pair of (think they are called) Box Anthias, the male is pink in color with a lighter colored pink box on his side. Anyway I bought the female which is yellow in color (nice looking fish) the owner of the store wouldn't sell me the male as he wasn't doing good (both had just come in on a shipment) He later died and I am waiting for another male to come in. Not sure that I want the male now though and the female appears to be doing good by herself. Is the male a must have?

I'll treat them with API General Cure (essentially PraziPro) for a week, then I'll monitor them for another 2-3. They'll be going in our 90 reef, which already has a pair of Lyretail Anthias, so I'll need to do a breeder-box introduction which will take 2-3 days.


Box (or Squarespot) anthias are definitely underrated. I've been thinking about some for the big tank. A male isn't really a requirement, you could also add another female and the more dominant one will turn male.

Some new pics. They went into the DT a couple weeks ago. The established Lyretail pair are slooowly warming up to them.

They really look nice. My female died, I think my Yellow Tang was picking on her.

can you give me more info on the squarebox anthias? I'm looking for something else for the tank but I don't think its big enough for a male and female squaresbox, or even just a male squarebox. 65 gal tank. How are the Bicolors doing?

The Bicolors are doing great, their squabbling amongst themselves and with the lyretails has pretty much ceased *knock on wood*. They're mostly on a NLS Thera A+ diet, cause I've been lazy.

The Squarespots are a really beautiful species. But they get absolutely huge; I have seen males topping 8" and females not far behind. For a 65, I'd consider one of the smaller species, like Randall's, Flavoguttatus, Sunsets, etc.

Don't overlook P. bartlettorum--my all-time favorite other than P. pleurotaenia. Bartletts' are a bit milder in temperament than most species and are, other than squamipinnis, probably the hardiest species available.

yea i don't know much about anthias. been more of a wrasse guy and with an interest in some cardinals. I just think the anthias have some great color. After asking about the squareback I did a little research and realized it wouldn't work. So of the ones you guys listed which are easier to get eating, fairly hardy and might not need as much to eat as others and would do well in a 65 with a flame wrasse, swissguard basslet, and a gold assessor. I'm thinking maybe in a trio, or should I just stick with a few more wrasses.... or if a trio isn't a good idea what is the best one to put in by itself. Thoughts on the fatheads?

Fishfood wrote:yea i don't know much about anthias. been more of a wrasse guy and with an interest in some cardinals. I just think the anthias have some great color. After asking about the squareback I did a little research and realized it wouldn't work. So of the ones you guys listed which are easier to get eating, fairly hardy and might not need as much to eat as others and would do well in a 65 with a flame wrasse, swissguard basslet, and a gold assessor. I'm thinking maybe in a trio, or should I just stick with a few more wrasses.... or if a trio isn't a good idea what is the best one to put in by itself. Thoughts on the fatheads?

Not your traditional anthias. They don't really school or shoal to any real extent and they are reclusive, as opposed to be out and about.

Any of the ones listed (the three I listed or the one Andrew did), will be fine as a trio in a 65. Barletts are a fair bit easier to get feeding than the others I listed, but a bit more drab in coloration.

I guess it really depends on where you buy them, and if they're eating at the time of purchase. If you buy from a LFS it's pretty easy to see their health and whether they're eating or not, just buy from a reputable source. If you buy online, spend the extra couple bucks for a nice guarantee. Only real issue with Anthias aside from feeding, is internal parasites. They need a good deworming.

Skip the Fatheads. They hide (alot) and don't interact other than to chase each other out of their territories.

I'll have to put some thought into this. I don't know if I'm able to set up a qt. Space limits just don't allow it. I know i should for all fish but... Anyway it looks like divers den has a trio of resplendeds right now and ny aquatics has some feeding bicolors. Unfortionatly I'm not ready to dive into these guys yet and I'm going to be out of town this week for work. I don't think the fathead would hide any more than the assessor and swissguard do at this point. The flame actually has caused them to come out a little bit more but not as much as I'd like.

Yea, those P. pulcherrimus were quite nice. If I didn't have something else planned, I would have considered those as a final stocking for the 90. Though it looks like they are sold.

I think Diver's Den fish would be the only fish I'd ever be comfortable enough to consider introducing into my tank without QT.