Shrimp-Friendly Fish?

[tennisjad3]

I feel like every time I find a fish I like it I am told this fish harbors a burning desire to murder every shrimp I have. Which is only 2, but still. I have a skunk cleaner and blood shrimp that are about 2 inches each. What fish won't kill them?

I currently have 2 tiny skunk clowns that just don't even seem to realize the shrimp exist until the blood shrimp terrorizes their anemone and I have to beat it away with a net. I also have a candy stripped hogfish who really enjoys staring at the heater in deep thought and then running into it facefirst shortly after.

What other special fish can I get in my 29 gallon?

[CJohnson]

Diamond goby, yellow watchman goby, fire fish, bicolor blenny, or a cardinal fish are some off the top of my head.

[jolt]

I have a 32 gallon with 2 skunk shrimp. My current stock is a clownfish, an orchid dottyback, a yellow assessor basslet, a hector's goby, and a pink streaked wrasse. They all get along fine.

[mFrame]

I feel like every time I find a fish I like it I am told this fish harbors a burning desire to murder every shrimp I have. Which is only 2, but still. I have a skunk cleaner and blood shrimp that are about 2 inches each. What fish won't kill them?

I currently have 2 tiny skunk clowns that just don't even seem to realize the shrimp exist until the blood shrimp terrorizes their anemone and I have to beat it away with a net. I also have a candy stripped hogfish who really enjoys staring at the heater in deep thought and then running into it facefirst shortly after.

What other special fish can I get in my 29 gallon?

It's probably easiest for you to list fish you're interested in that to list all fish that are shrimp-safe. Do you have particular fish in mind?

[tennisjad3]

I feel like every time I find a fish I like it I am told this fish harbors a burning desire to murder every shrimp I have. Which is only 2, but still. I have a skunk cleaner and blood shrimp that are about 2 inches each. What fish won't kill them?

I currently have 2 tiny skunk clowns that just don't even seem to realize the shrimp exist until the blood shrimp terrorizes their anemone and I have to beat it away with a net. I also have a candy stripped hogfish who really enjoys staring at the heater in deep thought and then running into it facefirst shortly after.

What other special fish can I get in my 29 gallon?

It's probably easiest for you to list fish you're interested in that to list all fish that are shrimp-safe. Do you have particular fish in mind?

So far I've fall in love with a small squirrelfish, a couple of wrasses, a baby harlequin tusk, panther grouper and a few others. The tusk and grouper were half the size of my shrimp, but apparently still threats. I just want a fish with a lot of personality honestly

[mFrame]

And this is all for your 29g? I would say all of those are bad choices for both shrimp compatibility and for a 29g tank.

The panther group grows to over 2' long and is highly predatory. The Harlequin grows to 10", is also fairly aggressive and needs a much larger tank. Most squirrelfish reach almost 1' long and need larger tanks (75g).

For a 29 you want to primarily be looking for fish in the "nano" size category. Mystery Wrasses, Leopard Wrasses, and Flame Hawk's have incredible personalities and are very colorful. A pair of clowns with an anemone is doable depending on your lighting. Dwarf Angels, watchman goby, blennys, cardinal fish (banghai) are all ones I would check out and have had in various smaller tanks.

Take a look here and here

Or check with any of our reputable local fish stores like River City Aquatics (Jake and his staff), Austin Aquadome (Gary and crew), or Niko's (Travis). They'll all steer you toward appropriate fish.

Don't buy into the idea that you'll get a large fish as a baby and then sell or trade it later when it grows, that seldom works out well. Pick a good community of fish for your tank and you'll get a lot of enjoyment from it throughout. Some of my favorite fish are the guys that have been around from the start.