# Yellow Tang



## lotf001 (Jul 18, 2005)

Last week my girlfriend surprised me with a beautiful yellow tang :fish: . (Witch I have never had before) and he dose not seem to be eating. I have 7 small damsels and the one tang in a 40 gal tank. I feed the damsels first then I feed the tang and he smells it and seems interested but the small fish get to it first  . I have put some romaine lettuce on a clip for him but he seems to be scared of it. Any suggestions on getting him to eat??? Should I try some dried sea weed on the clip for him? If so what is the rule on how long to leave the SW or RL in the tank??


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

It's time for the damsels to go; their job is finished. If you'd rather keep them, though, then yes, try some Nori or other seaweed, some spirulina wafers, or even some lettuce. You can let the Seaweed or lettuce stay on the clip for most of the day with no problems. Eventually the tang should start to eat whatever you offer, but I'm pretty sure it's too nervous around the damsels to settle down enough to eat.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

especially when he can get ambushed by those aggressive little buggers, and believe me he knows it... its like walking down the street wearing diamonds and a gang is watching you. However, I will say that your tang should eat pretty much anything once you get him to settle. Romaine lettuce doesn't seem to be the best food for them though, I go with pretty much all seaweeds, spiralina algae flakes, and macro from the refugium... 
This is my baby right here, her name is corrine and she can hardly wait til the seaweed gets in the tank before she's on it. Sometimes I can see her trying to get a piece before I even get my hand out of the way... lol, it kinda scares me because she's got those nasty razor blades attached to her caudal peduncle.


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## redpaulhus (Jan 18, 2005)

sometimes to get them started (and fattened up in the store) I feed them the spirulina loaded frozen brine shrimp from SF Bay brand - they tend to gobble them right down.
But I agree with the above - nori and lots of veggie flakes (Ocean Nutritions Formula Two flake, or HBH Graze, or Omega One Veggie or Kelp flakes, etc). 
I also like to feed them frozen Formula Two, but the damsels will slurp that up before the tang can get it IMO

Rather than leave the nori in a flat sheet in the clip, I roll it up into a tight roll (like a little burrito or spring roll or gasp cigarette) - it seems to hold up longer before getting pulled out of the clip and floating around the tank  (I use about a 2" square piece of nori)


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## lotf001 (Jul 18, 2005)

thank you all for the advice. I did get some nori the other day and he loved it. the damsels didn't seem to pay any attention to it but he the tang loved it.

thanks again


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

no problem, thats kinda just what we do here  glad its working out for you, although those damsels probably going to be a headache when you want to add another fish that is less able to hold their own unlike the yellow tang.


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## TheReefAddict (Nov 21, 2006)

I wish my eel would eat my electric blue damsel fish...I cannot catch him!


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