Tankmates should be chosen with care. Though butterflyfish are not efficient fish predators, small fish that venture too close to their mouths will be eaten.
Larger tetras and barbs
are safe from predation. Small bottom-oriented cichlids, catfish, Ctenopoma species, and mormyrids are also excellent choices.
Can African butterfly fish live together?
African butterfly fish are relatively peaceful fish and
can be kept together if conditions are right
. Tank size should allow for each fish to be able to establish their own territory at the surface of the water; plants will help further allow them to set up these areas and retreat to cover if needed.
What can live with a butterfly fish?
The temperature should be ideally set to 72 to 78 degrees Fahrenheit. The butterfly fish can be fed on a standard diet of tropical fish food and flakes with a mixture of plants and meat. Tank mates can include
gobies, parrotfish, and clownfish
, but some species may be more territorial than others.
Can I mix butterfly fish?
Yes, depends on the species
. Generally, similar looking ones can be aggressive with each other, and some are notoriously mean to all other butterflies.
What size tank do African Butterfly Fish need?
The minimum recommended tank size for an African Butterfly Fish is
40 gallons
. However, that’s only part of the equation. It’s very important to get a long tank instead of a tall one. These fish will spend almost all of their time near the surface of the water, so any space below them won’t get much use.
What do I feed my African Butterfly Fish?
Since they are carnivores, the African Butterflyfish will eat
all types of protein foods
. They especially like live insects. Feed flies, mosquito larvae, small spiders, worms, small fish, brine shrimp, small prawns, and large flake food. We have had good success feeding them small crickets.
Can you keep multiple butterfly fish together?
The more territorial fish are usually fine in pairs or small groups of the same species, but
mixing them with other Butterflyfish should generally be avoided
. Ideal tank-makes for Butterflyfish include Clownfish, Damsels, Gobies, Hogfish, Parrotfish, and Tangs.
How long do African butterfly fish live?
The African Butterfly Fish typically lives for
five to six years
. If you look after it, feed it a balanced diet, and ensure suitable water conditions, it can live even longer.
Are African butterflies Hardy?
These African butterflies are
hardy fish
and are relatively easy to care for. For these particular fish to survive appropriately, you need to control the aquarium’s temperature steady, which is ranges from 75 to 86 °F (24 to 30 °C).
What do you feed Hatchetfish?
Food and Tankmates
Common hatchetfish are devout carnivores; vegetative matter does not, to any appreciable measure, factor into their natural dietary regimen. Feed
protein-rich flakes, brine shrimp, tubifex, bloodworms, or small, floating, carnivore pellets
.
Are butterfly fish aggressive?
Freshwater butterflyfish are kept in large aquaria, although a single specimen should be kept as the only top-level fish, as
they can be aggressive to their own kind and others at surface level
.
How big do baby Whalefish get?
| Size 8 Inches | Hardness Moderate | Diet Carnivore | Lifespan 10 years | Minimum Tank Size 30 Gallons |
|---|
How long can butterfly fish go without food?
As far as vacation feeding is concerned, it’s generally safe to assume that most healthy (note the emphasis) fish will be fine for
a few days to a week or so
without eating depending on the species. Beyond that, you’ll definitely want to make some accommodation to have the fish fed—even if just every two or three days.
Will butterfly fish eat coral?
butterflyfishes often prey on soft corals and gorgonians
and as such are a significant threat to place in a reef aquarium. Many aquarists have reported success with keeping these fish with small polyp stony corals such as Acropora and Montipora, but large polyp stony corals may be picked on.
Are butterflyfish easy to keep?
Vagabond Butterflyfish (Chaetodon vagabundus) – An omnivorous species, the vagabond butterflyfish is
easy to keep
but it does get fairly large – up to 9 inches long. This butterflyfish is found in the Indo-Pacific and it feeds on algae and coral polyps as well as worms and crustaceans.
What do you feed butterfly fish?
Unless otherwise noted in individual species profiles, most all Butterflyfishes can be fed a varied diet of
vitamin-enriched marine fish, crustacean, and mollusk flesh, mysid shrimp, and any appropriate frozen preparations suitable for carnivores
.
How much does a butterfly fish cost?
A butterflyfish typically costs
between $20 and $60
. While this price range is typical for many butterflyfish, they can vary in cost. Butterflyfish are priced according to their species and cost anywhere up to $4,000, depending on their unique characteristics and rarity.
Are African Butterfly Fish nocturnal?
Also,
they seem to be nocturnal
and come out under the “moon light” in search of prey after the main light has shut off. Enjoy! When keeping this fish make sure that there are no tetras or smaller barbs or even baby corys. Feed them floating food to give them best results.
What is the smallest butterfly fish?
| Speckled butterflyfish | Genus: Chaetodon | Subgenus: Chaetodon (Exornator) | Species: C. citrinellus | Binomial name |
|---|
What is fish butterfly cut?
Butterflying is
another way of filleting a finfish
. Rather than taking the fillets away from the backbone, the bone is taken out. The result is one fillet, not two. Usually the head and tail are left on to hold the finfish together during cooking.
Will butterfly fish eat anemone?
Though some species are omnivorous that feed on algae growing on the reefs. The animals that the butterflyfish eat in the wild are crustaceans like shrimps, prawns, crabs, other small-sized crustaceans, delicate and hard corals, and
sea anemones
, phylum cnidarian, and a lot of invertebrate species.
What is the hardiest butterfly fish?
The
Auriga Butterflyfish, also known as the Threadfin Butterflyfish
, is one of the more popular and readily available butterflyfish. Generally a hardy species, in the wild it is found on inner and outer reef slopes. As with many fish, the Threadfin Butterfly’s color and markings can vary with the region of origin.
How many butterfly fish are left in the world?
There are at least
114 species
of butterflyfish.
Do butterfly fish have teeth?
Yes, butterflyfish have teeth
. They have small, close-set, and comb-like sets of teeth. Butterflyfish have evolved with these teeth in order to eat coral, shrimp, plankton, and crustaceans. Despite their teeth, most species of butterflyfish are not aggressive and will work nicely as tank mates for other fish.
