Help me wrap up my stocking list

[Landon K]

I am currently deciding how I would like to complete the fish stocking for my RS Reefer 300XL (~3'x2'x2'). I currently have a pair of yellow coris wrasse's (one is a juvenile female, and the larger one is clearly dominant and transitioning to male). I also have 3 azure damsels that bicker some amongst themselves, but are completely submissive to both wrasse's. I would like to add 2-3 smaller fish. With an established pair of yellow coris wrasse, are any other wrasse additions likely to cause trouble? Maybe a pair of bartlett's anthias? A pair of black cap basslet's? I like to keep my fish in pairs/groups whenever possible. Suggestions?

 

[MnFish1]

Your preference. Please post a picture of your tank. Welcome to the site

 

[i cant think]

I am currently deciding how I would like to complete the fish stocking for my RS Reefer 300XL (~3'x2'x2'). I currently have a pair of yellow coris wrasse's (one is a juvenile female, and the larger one is clearly dominant and transitioning to male). I also have 3 azure damsels that bicker some amongst themselves, but are completely submissive to both wrasse's. I would like to add 2-3 smaller fish. With an established pair of yellow coris wrasse, are any other wrasse additions likely to cause trouble? Maybe a pair of bartlett's anthias? A pair of black cap basslet's? I like to keep my fish in pairs/groups whenever possible. Suggestions?

Just a warning;
Soon you’ll have two male Halichoeres chrysus. These will most likely fight in your tank size so you will want to rehome one as the second begins to mature.

As for other fish, why not throw in a couple more wrasses? Smaller Cirrhilabrus species (The Fairy Wrasses) will fit into that tank perfectly, if you do want other wrasses then it’s best you make a list that we can pick through.

for more help, a white FTS of your tank will be best.

 

[Landon K]

Just a warning;
Soon you’ll have two male Halichoeres chrysus. These will most likely fight in your tank size so you will want to rehome one as the second begins to mature.

As for other fish, why not throw in a couple more wrasses? Smaller Cirrhilabrus species (The Fairy Wrasses) will fit into that tank perfectly, if you do want other wrasses then it’s best you make a list that we can pick through.

for more help, a white FTS of your tank will be best.

Dang. I was under the assumption that once one clearly established itself as "in charge", the other would remain female? They play nice together at this time, always swimming together in an almost synchronized fashion. The larger one seems to almost flirt by swimming a corkscrew around the female from time to time. Is it a given that this very interesting synergy won't last? Thanks.

 

[i cant think]

Dang. I was under the assumption that once one clearly established itself as "in charge", the other would remain female? They play nice together at this time, always swimming together in an almost synchronized fashion. The larger one seems to almost flirt by swimming a corkscrew around the female from time to time. Is it a given that this very interesting synergy won't last? Thanks.

Unfortunately it is, you can keep them for a while until they both mature and the second starts to show signs of transitioning though.

 

[Landon K]

I will post a picture of the tank when I get home from work this evening

 

[MnFish1]

Just a warning;
Soon you’ll have two male Halichoeres chrysus. These will most likely fight in your tank size so you will want to rehome one as the second begins to mature.

As for other fish, why not throw in a couple more wrasses? Smaller Cirrhilabrus species (The Fairy Wrasses) will fit into that tank perfectly, if you do want other wrasses then it’s best you make a list that we can pick through.

for more help, a white FTS of your tank will be best.

I'm not totally sure this is absolute. In fact it cannot be. Otherwise- in the wild all wrasses would become male. However - I would heed your advice

 

[Landon K]

Unfortunately it is, you can keep them for a while until they both mature and the second starts to show signs of transitioning though.

Understood. So, is it nearly impossible to pair these fish in a home aquarium, or does it just need to be a much larger tank?

As far as other wrasses I like - Cirrhilabrus naokoae, Cirrhilabrus adornatus, Cirrhilabrus bathyphilus, and Pseudocheilinus ocellatus are all fish that I really like.

 

[damsels are not mean]

I'm not totally sure this is absolute. In fact it cannot be. Otherwise- in the wild all wrasses would become male. However - I would heed your advice

Maybe it's just a tendency in tanks, but also in the wild there is quite a lot more turnover in the population. It's entirely possible that eventually all wrasses would become males but very rarely do the social hierarchies last in the ocean due to premature deaths or just animals moving around.

 

[Landon K]

Maybe it's just a tendency in tanks, but also in the wild there is quite a lot more turnover in the population. It's entirely possible that eventually all wrasses would become males but very rarely do the social hierarchies last in the ocean due to premature deaths or just animals moving around.

Interesting theory. I hadn't thought of this.

 

[i cant think]

I'm not totally sure this is absolute. In fact it cannot be. Otherwise- in the wild all wrasses would become male. However - I would heed your advice

In the wild you have many wrasses, even submales in the mix. You also have several mature males however it’s believed submales hide themselves as males so that they aren’t killed off.

As mentioned above, it is also much more likely in captivity for wrasses to transition. It’s really not an unheard of thing to have a pair transition to two males.

 

[Landon K]

I was able to make it home today earlier than expected. Here are a couple of quick pictures I took. My camera is junk, so I apologize for the quality.

Some Information: Tank has been cycled for almost two months and I just turned the lights on about three weeks ago. Diatoms everywhere at the moment. I work from home most days so for feeding I thaw a small chunk of Rod's food into a cup of tank water and feed very small amounts throughout the day. Usually 6-8 small feedings.

The tank was cycled with all dry rock and sand, but I added 5lbs of TBS premium gulf rock to seed the tank further after the cycle was complete. It may be hard to tell from the pictures but there are plenty of caves and swim-throughs within the rockwork. The tank will be SPS dominant which is why the rock structure is relatively low in the tank. Thank you all for taking a look and giving fish suggestions!

 

[SaltyT]

I'm not totally sure this is absolute. In fact it cannot be. Otherwise- in the wild all wrasses would become male. However - I would heed your advice

@i cant think is correct. Halichoeres sp. females in the wild want to become male in order to carry on their genes, but the social hierarchy of their harem dictates when she can transition to an initial-phase male and then onto a terminal-phase male. We cannot replicate the social hierarchy of halichoeres sp. harems in home aquaria so nature will eventually take its course and the female will transition to a male, it's just a matter of time.

 

[Landon K]

@i cant think is correct. Halichoeres sp. females in the wild want to become male in order to carry on their genes, but the social hierarchy of their harem dictates when she can transition to an initial-phase male and then onto a terminal-phase male. We cannot replicate the social hierarchy of halichoeres sp. harems in home aquaria so nature will eventually take its course and the female will transition to a male, it's just a matter of time.

This is a bummer as they are very interesting to watch while they are friendly with one another. I will remove one at the first sign of aggression. What do you guys think about replacing one with a Mystery Wrasse? Are they compatible with Halichoeres in this tank? I suppose a safer bet would be Cirrhilabrus?

 

[i cant think]

This is a bummer as they are very interesting to watch while they are friendly with one another. I will remove one at the first sign of aggression. What do you guys think about replacing one with a Mystery Wrasse? Are they compatible with Halichoeres in this tank? I suppose a safer bet would be Cirrhilabrus?

Mysterys are in the genus we really don’t recommend mixing with any wrasses other than the most aggressive of them. The safest bets in that size are;
Macropharyngodon
Cirrhilabrus
Pseudocheilinops*
Xenojulis
Pseudojuloides
Wetmorella*

Both genera with a * are the genera that need to be added before other aggressive fish and before the tank is highly active. This is due to them often stressing out too much and dying.

 

[Landon K]

Mysterys are in the genus we really don’t recommend mixing with any wrasses other than the most aggressive of them. The safest bets in that size are;
Macropharyngodon
Cirrhilabrus
Pseudocheilinops*
Xenojulis
Pseudojuloides
Wetmorella*

Both genera with a * are the genera that need to be added before other aggressive fish and before the tank is highly active. This is due to them often stressing out too much and dying.

Are any fish in the genus Cirrhilabrus able to be kept in pairs, or is it a similar story to Halichoeres?

 

[SaltyT]

This is a bummer as they are very interesting to watch while they are friendly with one another. I will remove one at the first sign of aggression. What do you guys think about replacing one with a Mystery Wrasse? Are they compatible with Halichoeres in this tank? I suppose a safer bet would be Cirrhilabrus?

Your yellows both look small so I think you have some time. Enjoy the courting while you can. Once a female starts transitioning she will show aggression towards the male as she tries to dominate him. New males will try to take out the old male just as they would in nature.

I agree with @i cant think Mystery wrasses don't mix well with other wrasses so I would not recommend adding one.

Cirrhilabrus are the same as halichoeres... pairs don't work out.

 

[i cant think]

Are any fish in the genus Cirrhilabrus able to be kept in pairs, or is it a similar story to Halichoeres?

Honestly for most wrasses outside of;
Pseudocheilinops*
Wetmorella*
Macropharyngodon
Anampses

It’s all a very similar situation. Again, the reason the same two genera have a * is due to them needing more of an experienced wrasse keeper to keep them in more than just a single specimen IME. The reason for this is there is absolutely no way to know which is male and which are female or transitioning as of yet.
This is an old photo of my trio of Pseudocheilinops ataenia from September 1st. As you can see, they’re all identical

And here’s a photo from I believe just a week ago;

Again, as you can see there’s still no difference. I do believe I’ve seen signs of how we may be able to tell if they’re male however it’s not confirmed and it’s a behaviour I can’t find written about anywhere.

 

[Landon K]

Are there any specific care requirements for Cirrhilabrus naokoae? I am planning on getting a lid for the tank before adding more fish, btw.

 

[i cant think]

Are there any specific care requirements for Cirrhilabrus naokoae? I am planning on getting a lid for the tank before adding more fish, btw.

Honestly, naokoae is rather easy to care for in terms of the wrasses. It should be noted to watch out for any signs of aggression as this is known for being a bit more boisterous than others in the genus however I personally haven’t seen that in many specimens we’ve had in the LFS or even in person.