Mixing Triggerfish

KenyanSandBoa

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cepon3;785832; said:
Jest wondering any suggestions on possible cleanup crew for a cohab tank with A picasso, clown, queen, blueline trigger?
I was replying to the thread quoted above, and this got me thinking...what experiences have people had keeping multiple species of triggers together?

I have a Balistapus undulatus in a 125 with some other guys and I have not had a single instance of aggression with the trigger. I'm thinking of trying to add a Balistoides conspicillum or a Rhinecanthus aculeatus, but I would like to know what experiences people have had doing this.

I've heard it's best to attempt this while they are still young so I want to do it now before he's a monster. What are your thoughts?
 

cepon3

Gambusia
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alot of people say that mixing triggers is tough.. i have had picassos in with everything from chromis to monster pineapple triggers.. in my opinion triggers are the easiest saltwater fish to take care of.. so in the case of the picasso i think you should be fine mixing it with others.. With the undulate you should be fine also alot of people say undulates ae very aggressive but all of th ones i had got beat up by red dottybacks. i guess it just depends on your fish
 

chrisdef15

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Sep 10, 2005
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I reckon you will waste time and money.
Anyone trying to claim triggers can live together in tanks only has seen small ones together. Once they are mature its a totally different story.
Im not saying its not at all possible as all sorts of wierd things happen in this hobby but more often then not it doesnt work.
Especially with an undulate. Try it though if you want and get pics of the results.
 

Fish Finder

Candiru
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Jun 30, 2005
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I have seen it work and personally had it. The trick is that you have to have planktonvor triggers. These triggers are black dergen, crosshatch, sargassum, blue jaw, pink tail, and goldback. I might of missed one or two but also remember that half of these triggers are well over $100 each.

For those who are wondering i used to have in my old 210G (going back about 6 years) 1 black durgen about 8", crosshatch pair about 9"each, 1 sargassum about 7", and 1 goldback about 11". I had them together for about 2 years until i moved and had to sell my collection.
 

chrisdef15

Gambusia
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That i will believe. The planktivores are alot less agressive then the predatory ones.
Keeping full grown undulates and nigers and picassos ect together is a totally different story.
 

tonysdiscus

Jack Dempsey
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Nov 9, 2006
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chrisdef15;790256; said:
That i will believe. The planktivores are alot less agressive then the predatory ones.
Keeping full grown undulates and nigers and picassos ect together is a totally different story.
i agree the undulates are mean ass mo fo's i would suggest you get a trigger that is bigger
 

KenyanSandBoa

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chrisdef15;789662; said:
I reckon you will waste time and money.
Anyone trying to claim triggers can live together in tanks only has seen small ones together. Once they are mature its a totally different story.
Im not saying its not at all possible as all sorts of wierd things happen in this hobby but more often then not it doesnt work.
Especially with an undulate. Try it though if you want and get pics of the results.
Well, I don't have pics of the results but I'm sure if I describe it you can generate an image:

My newest addition (5" Picasso Trigger) swimming around with all his other tankmates in a 125, happy as can be...and my Undulated Trigger (3") now in a tank of his own because he SNAPPED and started to not only beat the hell out of the new trigger, but everyone else in the tank. It was weird...like a switch was thrown and his temperment changed instantly.

So my experiment with mixing triggers is done. :screwy:
 

chrisdef15

Gambusia
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Thank you for some backup. Im sure it wont stop people trying it though. And like i said they where still young if they had both been a year or 2 older it could have been worse.
 

DreamCatcher1987

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Apr 17, 2007
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I have a friend of mine who has a 600 gallon saltwater predator tank who has a dogface puffer, 2 golden puffers, a picasso trigger, a bursa trigger, and a clown trigger who get along VERY well as adults, they only fought once and that was for dominance. I asked my friend if he was worried and he said after they established their pecking order, it was all fine after that.
 

KenyanSandBoa

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Well I know I won't be trying this again. It got ugly pretty quick. It seems that there are far fewer success stories than disaster stories with this subject.

I guess having a 600 gallon tank would help quite a bit. I would love to have some triggers together, but I'll just stick to one per tank from now on.
 
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