Royal Gramma Basslet
Common Names: Royal Gramma, Fairy Basslet
Scientific Name: Gramma loreto
Family: Grammidae
Maximum Size: 3 inches
Life expectancy: 5 years
Minimum Tank Size: 30 gallons
Temperature Range: 72 – 78°F
pH Range: 8.1 – 8.4
SG: 1.020 – 1.025
Water hardness: 8 – 12
Temperament: Peaceful
Origin: Caribbean, Tropical Western Pacific
Aquarium Setup:
A larger tank is recommended, especially if you’re planning to have several Royal Gramma Basslets. But, they have been kept successfully in tanks as small as 10 gallons when only one is present.
If a small substrate is used they will enjoy digging and rearranging the sand or gravel. They need lot’s of caves and crevices, many Royal Gramma’s won’t venture far from their chosen home. It’s recommended to have at least two hiding places for each Grammar in the tank.
Kaudern's Cardinal
Common Names: Kaudern’s Cardinal, Longfin Cardinalfish, Banggai Cardinalfish
Scientific Name: Pterapogon kauderni
Family: Apogonidae
Maximum Size: 3 inches
Life expectancy: 5 years
Minimum Tank Size: 30 gallons
Temperature Range: 72 – 78°F
pH Range: 8.1 – 8.4
Sg: 1.020 – 1.025
Water hardness: 8 – 12
Temperament: Semi-Aggressive
Origin: Indonesia
Aquarium Setup:
The Kaudern’s Cardinal normally doesn’t bother corals and plants and can be kept in marine setups. They like lots of caves for hiding and claiming as territories. They love live rock and won’t bother any coral you may have in the aquarium.
Auriga Butterflyfish
Common Names: Auriga Butterflyfish, Threadfin Butterflyfish, Cross-Stripe Butterflyfish
Scientific Name: Chaetodon auriga
Family: Chaetodontidae
Maximum Size: 9 inches
Life expectancy: 5 years
Minimum Tank Size: 50 gallons
Temperature Range: 72-78 °F
pH Range: 8.2 – 8.4
SG: 1.021 – 1.023
Water hardness: 8 – 12
Temperament: Peaceful
Origin: Fiji, Hawaii, Indo-Pacific, Maldives, Tonga
Aquarium Setup:
Auriga Butterflyfish are bold swimmers and need lots of room to move around. They’re also shy and should have plenty of hiding places such as caves and crevices.
They prefer a sandy bottom and aren’t reef compatible as they will eat most types of invertebrates and corals. This species is very sensitive to low levels of ammonia in the water, but are normally a healthy breed if the water quality is maintained.
Green Mandarin
Common Names: Green Mandarin, Mandarinfish, Mandarin Dragonet, Psychedelic fish
Scientific Name: Synchiropus splendidus
Family: Callionymidae
Maximum Size: 4 inches
Life expectancy: years
Minimum Tank Size: 30 gallons
Temperature Range: 72 – 78 °F
pH Range: 8.1 – 8.4
Sg: 1.020 – 1.025
Water hardness: dkH 8 – 12
Temperament: Peaceful
Origin: Indonesia, Australia, Philippines and New Guinea
Aquarium Setup:
The suggested large size tank isn’t for the Green Mandarin’s size, it’s for their feeding habits. They feed off of the bottom on the live rocks and sand and need a large feeding area to assure they can find enough pods. Although, smaller tanks can be used if the pod population is sufficient.
Mandarin’s can be kept in reef aquariums without any problems. They like live sand, live rocks and love lots of places to hide. They’re almost always scouring the bottom for food.
Clown Triggerfish
Common Names: Clown Triggerfish, Yellow-blotched Triggerfish, Big-spotted Triggerfish
Scientific Name: Balistoides conspicillum
Family: Balistidae
Maximum Size: 1′ 8″ inches
Life expectancy: 20 years
Minimum Tank Size: 125 gallons
Temperature Range: 72-78 °F
pH Range: 8.1 – 8.4
SG: 1.020 – 1.025
Water hardness: 8 – 12
Temperament: Aggressive
Origin: Christmas Island, Coral Sea, Indo-Pacific
Aquarium Setup:
Due to their large adult size, Clown Triggerfish need really big tanks. They’re active fish that like to swim and will often search for food on the tank bottom rearranging things such as plants and rocks.
They sleep in caves and hide in them when frightened. So, make sure that you provide lots of large size caves and hiding spots for them. You can use rocks to create caves, but they will need to be secured or they may get knocked over.
