Below is a picture of an AquaCorals tank - with 5 different Tangs!

One of the most beloved reef fish is the Tang... & rightly so.  They come in just about every color & pattern imaginable.  Some swim gracefully, some ZOOM around the tank, some have a cute paddle swim. I can't imagine anyone not loving the sight of a Tang.  BUT, as different as they are to look at they also have very different "personalities".  Yes... I said Personalities!  Much like we see in other animals like dogs for instance, some aggressive (Yellows), some shy (Sailfins), some "nervous nellies" (Hippos) & some Kings (Nasos).  But even these reputations can only be used as a rule of thumb because as these fish get older & larger their "personalities" can, & often do, change too. Take this one step further & you'll find that "All Fish" have individual personalities of their own!  I've seen times where I've had multiple Yellow Tangs.  Most will be relaxed & one will bully everyone in sight - no matter the size of the other fish!  This fact makes it necessary to have a "Plan B" ready if things (or they) don't behave as planned.

Let's talk about the "plan".  You've decided you'd like more than one Tang in your tank.  Though many people still say you can't have more than one in a tank, I'm here to tell & show you that you can!  Below is a close-up of my 180g tank with all 5 Tangs.  Getting them all in one spot for a photo shoot was fun!  ;c)

1.  Yellow Tang
2.  Blue Hippo Tang
3.  Powder Blue Tang
4.  Blonde Naso Tang
5.  Flamefin (Tomini) Tang

Unless you have very small specimens only large tanks 5-6 Ft+ lengths) are truly successful in housing Tangs of the same species (& even then there are other tricks to do to achieve success) so for this conversation we'll assume you don't have the required tank & we're looking at housing different Tang species. If you plan on having only 2 then it's best to buy & introduce them both to your tank at the same time.  They should accept each other and not be a problem.  BUT, you want 4 Tangs in all but for bio-overload or financial reasons you can't purchase them all at once then we need to look at those "personalities".  You will want to stock first the Tangs on your wish list that have reputations for being laid back so that down the road when you want to introduce others there will be a greater chance of the existing Tang(s) accepting the newcomer(s).  Remember, all fish adopt our tanks as their home and many will defend their "territory" ferociously by chasing, biting, tail-slashing at newcomers.  If this happens then it might be necessary to remove the aggressor & place him in your sump or another tank for a week for an "attitude adjustment"!  Actually, what this does is allows the newcomer to acclimate to his new home in peace while giving the aggressor time to forget about his old home.  If we move a few corals/rocks around in the tank this will also help make things "look" different so when we reintroduce the "sump Tang" more than likely it will feel like the "new guy" again & hopefully not remember his old territory but rather accept the others already in there.  It may sound like a bit of work but honestly folks, if having more than one Tang swimming about your tank peacefully is what you want, the efforts are worth the intervention it may take on your part!