Added copperband and long nose

[Paul B]

Today I added a copperband and long nose butterfly. These have always been my favorite fish and I have always had them in my reef. The copperband is not in the greatest health, he has flukes and some wounds. It is not very easy getting a very healthy one of those.
I knew that when I saw him but I got a deal I couldn't refuse.
There are a bunch of local NY grass shrimp in my tank and the copperband thinks they are cleaner shrimp. He keeps hanging around next to the shrimp waiting to be cleaned, but they just look at him funny.

I just felt like adding these pictures

 

[steamman]

Good luck with them. I got lucky and bought a healthy specimen about a year ago. The fish is doing great. One of my favorites.

 

[9supratt4]

Awesome fish!!

Are the yellow long nose reef-safe?? I didn't think they are, hence why I've never bought one myself

 

[Paul B]

I have always had them and never had a problem with either one but some people report differently

 

[Nickjr000]

Awesome fish!!

Are the yellow long nose reef-safe?? I didn't think they are, hence why I've never bought one myself

The one i have is. Had him for about a year now, never bothers any coral, great citizen.

Good luck

 

[TanksNStuff]

I was planning on adding a copper band as my next fish. I haven't seen one at my LFS recently though, but I haven't been looking that hard either. I'm probably going to stop in tonight... hope I can find one.

PS, great pics Paul and good luck with the new fish.

 

[Paul B]

I never had a problem with either of them. Here is a picture I took in Tahiti.

 

[Hawkeye]

There are a bunch of local NY grass shrimp in my tank and the copperband thinks they are cleaner shrimp. He keeps hanging around next to the shrimp waiting to be cleaned, but they just look at him funny.

hey paul - love the tank and your threads.

Did the copperband check out the beer can and expect imported instead of domestic? I forget what brand you have in the tank.

 

[Paul B]

Budweiser

 

[TanksNStuff]

Well, this thread inspired me. I found a beautiful copperband at my LFS and he went in the QT tank on Friday.

I'd post a pic, but I forgot my camera at home today. It looks identical to Paul's in the first pic but mine is probably smaller in size.

 

[Paul B]

They all look like that. Except for the really cool ones, they have tattoos

 

[dougc]

Recently discovered that my longnose loves Instant Ocean Marine Chips. Never had any interest in any dry foods before. Only tried it because it came in an IO salt bucket. I have an automated feeder set up to provide some supplemental feeding during the day. Butterflies seem to thrive with more frequent feedings and the feeder fills that gap, especially in the summer, when I am away for a few days a week. Obviously, the longnose would prefer blackworms, but those are kind of hard to put through a feeder.

BTW, my longnose has never bothered corals; softies, acros, bubble, zoos, frogspawns, etc. Nor has it bothered my maxima clam.

 

[Hawkeye]

They all look like that. Except for the really cool ones, they have tattoos

LOL. I presume the cool ones also prefer imported beer?

Hey - i was over at sandy hook and probably looking in the wrong areas - saw hordes of hermits/snails but nothing remotely looking like an amphipod. even pulling up dead/molts of horseshoe crabs didn't yield anything. I wasn't looking to take any pods - just curious is all. The mating blue crabs were fun to net though...hahaha (try explaining that to a 5 yr old).

 

[Paul B]

Amphipods don't jump into a net, you have to lift porous looking rocks on the muddy beach at low tide. If the mud is too fine there will be hydrogen sulfide and nothing will live, but if you find the right rocks just above the water line at low tide you can get hundreds of them on one rock.
It also helps if you sing to them

 

[jimroth]

Hi Paul, cool picture from Fiji. I think it's worth noting that those are the BIG yellow longnose butterfly, Forcipiger longirostris, rather than the one we see usually in the trade, Forcipiger flavissimus. The big one is a harder to keep fish and is not importaed nearly as much. DD gets them, rarely.

 

[Paul B]

cool picture from Fiji.

Jim I took that picture in Bora Bora while SCUBA diving. I went there to study moorish Idols but there are long nose all over the place also. They do have longer ones than the ones in the pet trade.