Alternative Damsel to Green Chromis for Schooling

I'd like to put a decent sized school of damsels in my new 185, but am looking for an alternative to Green Chromis. Any other schooling damsel (another Chromis?) that anyone has had luck with?

 

ive got 5 schooling chromis. i know i know... not what you wanted to hear, but i shure love mine

 

I'm not a huge fan of the common chromis either, but not all chromis are created equal. check these out:

Saltwater Aquarium Fish for Marine Aquariums: Blue Reef Chromis
Black and White Chromis

Have you considered cardinals. I've had much better luck with them and they also add some night life to your tank.

 

ive also got bengghai cardinals, they are really cool fish. they just seen to hover there suspended by nothing. it truely is quite the sight

 

instead of chromis, what about anthias, more colourful! The lyrtails arent as difficult to look after as many of the other species out there.

 

Thanks for the input. I've tried the Blue Chromis before and they slowly disappeared. I don't know what from, but something was getting them, whether it was a predator, chemistry or something else. I have no idea what.

Now the other question is: Do all Chromis school?

I have two Bangais today and plan on buying two more to put in a side breeding tank. The problem is keeping more than two. The dominant pair tends to kill the others.

You're 100% correct! Which is why plan to add at least five Bartlett's

 

Many fish are schooling fish, but they don't do it in the home aquarium. Schooling is a defensive mechanism, I've had chromis and they don't really school, unless startled by another fish or scared of something. Most other fish really won't school either, unless you put a predator in the tank too, which is not a good idea.

 

Check out the Apogon genus of cardinals, lots of people seem to have good luck getting them to shoal in home aquariums and some of them are good peaceful inhabitants. Just make sure you get them from a place that knows how to handle them or from an LFS that has them established in a tank already because there has been a bad history with their mortality rates from shipping. I believe LiveAquaria has done a lot of testing with them recently and is now confident in shipping them, could keep an eye out there.

 

I had bought 3 Bangaii Cards and they died within a week. There might be something to what you say?? I have seven Chromis and they are fine although three of them are getting pretty big. I like the Cardinal idea for future reefers. It's a little too late for my tank but I still want to get a few Bangaii again just this time not from Big Al's.