What are good Beginner Salt water fish?

Answer 1

Damsels are the best beginner saltwater fish.

Answer 2

I have to agree with copperhead here. And for the record, clown fish are also damsels.

You need to get your tank up and running before you can consider what fish you are going to get. Are you going to use live rock or sand or not? This will effect the cycling process.

Taking home live rock (or not) adding salt to the water and tossing it into a tank does not give you a salt tank. Salt water is not like fresh water and does take longer to cycle. I would steer clear of the blue, bluetail and the clowns.

Also, part of learning your salt water is actually creating the water for your tank. Buying premade water is never a good idea especially when you will need to have make up water at home for evaporation and the quality of water from your tap and what you buy could be two totally different types. (Personally, I didn't even know you could buy premixed water at the store. Never saw it for sale anywhere) You really should have salt ready to mix at home.

also, it doesn't matter in the begining if you are going to use live rock (since it can be added any time) and 3 weeks really isn't long enough for your tank to cycle for new fish. Don't rush things here. Have patience . Also once your tank has cycled, you cannot add more than 1" of fish per 5 gallons of water three weeks apart. This will allow your new biofilter to readjust after adding fish. Once your tank is over the 6 month mark you can double this amount. The leading killer of new saltwater fish is not waiting for the correct amount of time before adding fish and adding too many fish at once. Remember, snails and inverts also count as fish.

I would suggest getting the reefkeepers bible as a reference book. This is a wonderful book for salt water keepers.
Saltwaterfish.com is a good webpage to check on different fish.

Feel free to email with any question on saltwater.

Answer 3

I would recommend that you not get damsels unless they're chromis. Damsels are what people in stores will try and sell you for cycling your tank because they're cheap and hardy. They don't tell you that they're aggressive and will try to kill anything you put in the tank after them! I've had some saltwater people tell me that damsels have killed eels and lionfish (which are venemous).

Chromis are a species of damsels that are a schooling fish and will get along with other fish in your tank. Depending on which species you get, the color is blue or blue-green. Some of the clownfish also do well. My own preferences to recommend for beginners are cardinalfish (especially Bangaii and Pajama), long nose hawkfish, firefish, and some of the blennies and gobies. What you ultimately get should be based on the size of tank you're planning to keep them in and your own interests.

Some general advice -

Put in the smallest and least aggressive of what you want first and work toward the most aggressive - but keep the aggresion levels similar.

Provide plenty of cover.

Don't try to mix species from the same family, that are the same color, or have the same body shape - these will lead to territorial fights between your fish.

Don't overcrowd your tank - marine fish are more aggressive, and more demanding of water quality than freshwater.

Give the fish enough room for their adult size and activity level. Some aren't that big, but require lots of swimming space.

Below are some websites where you can get info on some of these fish - I'd also recommend a good book for reading about water quality, equipment, fish compatibility, etc.

Answer 4

Welcome to the world of the marine aquarist! Much depends on your set up, as that will dictate size, amount and types of fish. This is probably way more of an answer that you were looking for but speaking from experience you will be able to save a whole lot of fish if you do it correctly.

Are you going fish only (FO) or fish w/ live rock (FOWLR) or reef? What type of filter are you using? Bio-wheels, power filter, hang-on filter, sump, etc. For all of the above you'll need to make sure your water levels are stable; salinity, PH, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, etc. Again, depending on your set up you might be able to add fish in as little as 3 weeks. This may seem like a long time but you'll learn patience is key in the beginning. Test the water levels while performing 10-20% water changes once per week in the beginning. I would suggest using store-purchased marine water as opposed to mixing your own--it's easier in the long run.

That all being said I would start with a few damsels--purchase in odd quatities of 3 or more. Choose ones you really like b/c you may be in your tank a long time as they are difficult to catch once your tank is fully stocked or if it's large in size. Clown fish, although pricey, are also good beginner fish. Remember that Clown fish are very territorial so they should be introduced together. They will kill other clowns if added later. Those are really all the fish I would start with. If they stay alive, at least 3 weeks, and do well then you can start going for the more expensive fish--if that's what your main objective is.

You're going to get a ton of info from people and at times it's going to be overwhelming. I suppose it's best to review all the answers and try and summarize them. I could go on and on but somnethimes it's just best to learn for yourself. The good thing is that there are a ton of helpful fish forums out there to assist you with questions. Or this forum?

Best of luck and hope my answer helped!

Answer 5

Damsels do make good saltwater beginner fish. Choose which damsel type you get carefully as some can be very aggressive. Usually the blue green chromis damsel, blue damsel, or blue with the yellow tail damsels are not as agressive as the black, or zebra types. Clowns make good starter fish but yes are aggressive to their own species. Take it slowly, don't add any fish until your cycle is done, and don't add in all your fish at once.

Answer 6

Any type of Clownfish

Answer 7

small aneminies and tomato clowns, 1 for each