How big of a tank to keep a group of bangaiis?

Hi all,

I was wondering how big of a tank I would need to keep a group of about 4 bangaiis to allow them to pair up and then I would obviously take the unpaired bangaiis back to the shop or trade them to a fellow reefer.

Cheers,

Matt

I'm interested to see what others input is.  I'd say maybe a 40br with lots of hiding places at minimum?
 
*the bigger the better always though.

Yeah Scott.

Hopefully we can boh get some good feedback

What does 40br mean or did you mean gallons?

Cheers,

Matt

Yeah Scott.

Hopefully we can boh get some good feedback

What does 40br mean or did you mean gallons?

Cheers,

Matt

He means a 40 gallon breeder tank..
 
They are like 36"x16"x16" I think.

-Adam

Oh thanks

Tanks aren't as cheap here in Aus as they are in the US. I wonder why?

Cheers,

Matt

I would say nothing less than maybe 100 to 200 gallons....300+ better.  This is based on my experiences...I can guarantee that in a 40 breeder you will only end up with 1 pair.

Thanks

I agree that the bigger the tank the better

Matt

 
But he isn't planning to keep them all together in the tank, he was more asking in terms of getting one pair and then the others would get taken back to the store or traded...or am I misunderstanding the question?
 
AusMatt,
How large of fish would you be starting with?  Small juvenile size ones, or full grown?  Because if they are full grown and well fed you could try to sex them via the vent method before you even bring them home...but it isn't always easy to find full grown and well fed banggais

ShannPeach you have completely understood the question That is what I was asking

I would be looking at getting 3 more medium sized bangaiis and putting them in my 70 litre reef to let them pair up and then remove the ones that are left out of the action.

Is this a good move or should I just try my best to use the vent method to sex them at the LFS?

Certain my bangaii is a male so if only I could find a definite female to test him out.

I will probably end up just giving it a whirl and trying my best to find a bangaii that I am most sure is a female out of the group.

Cheers,

Matt

I would try to sex them at the LFS if you can, just because then you don't have to deal with the added stress of shuffling the extra fish.

Yeah.

Will give it a shot at LFS and if it doesn't work then maybe next time I will buy a group.

Any other opinions guys?

Thanks for the help,

Matt

I like the LFS sexing idea.  I've had such bad luck pairing with that size tank (70 liters is about 20 gallons right?).
 
I haven't kept up on the current techniques; what is the best way to pair banggai?  I've given up and am just going to try the Tropicorium method (giant pond with lots of banggai).

Yeah LFS is probably easiest way to tell but maybe not the most accurate depending on when bangaiis were fed etc.

Yeah 70 litres is about 20 gallons

Many ways to pair bangaiis such as:
- Vent method: As mentioned above you look at the vents on the bangaiis belly ( male has 2, female has 1)
-Natural selection: Which is exactly the same as your giant pond idea

Also a few less accurate techniques such as Finnage and jaw structure.

Cheers,

Matt

I would not try a group in a 40. 
 
My journal on here might provide some insights.  I will be wrapping up this journal in the next few days.  Part of my observations will be that groups can definately be maintained but two key components will be, age of introduction, and space (which I will elaborate on in that journal).

70 liters is about 30 gallons. 
 
I've had good success pairing groups of 3-5 in a 40-gallon breeder tank (36x18x16").  As soon as a pair is formed it is removed into its own tank.  The tank I have used just had some crushed coral, a few leaving tiles and some 2" PVC pipe pieces for hiding places. 
 
I have found it almost impossible to sex Banggai in the LFS.  My LFS doesn't have access to captive bred Banggai, and the wild ones are almost always skinny when they come in.  You can't sex them with the vent method if they are skinny.  If your LFS carries captive bred Banggai then maybe they will be fat enough that you can sex them.  They have to be fat, PLUS they have to be recently fed.  Although most of my older Banggai (which are quite fat) usually have their vents visible before I feed them.

Don't let fear and common sense stop you! =]