Leopard wrasse

[khushtram]

Hello everyone, I added a tiny leopard wrasse to my tank last night after dropping for about 1 hour. At the lfs he was very active and eating of course so I know I had a healthy specimen. After doing him into the tank all my other fish came to meet him as usual and no one showed any aggression towards him as I like to keep peaceful tankmates. My issue is it is now 24hrs later and I come home from work to look at my new fish and he is nowhere to be found. My biggest fear is that my cuc got to him since he was only .5 inches big. Are they shy creatures and need time? Or was he crab food.

 

[leroy_jenkinz]

Leopard wrasses are very timid, it takes many days if not weeks for them to get use their tank. I have a new one for about 5 weeks now and he still only comes out for about 4-6 hours a day. He eats, scavenges eats and goes back to sleep. Some days he only eats once or maybe gets full on copepods. Depending on thickness of your sand I bet if you look at the bottom of your tank you will see his fins if you’re worried he’s gone but my bet is he’s just acclimating normally

 

[malacoda]

I'm assuming you have a sand bed?

They sleep in the sand. And, when frightened or nervous will also bury themselves in the sand. I wouldn't worry, probably just buried in the sand recuperating from the stress of moving to a new tank. If it's a recent arrival from the wild, it's body clock could be off as well, causing it to sleep during the day and come out at night.

Just give it a few days (they can stay buried for as long as two maybe three weeks). When it's adjusted to the new tank and/or time shift, you'll probably see it out. And whatever you do, don't go poking around in the sand trying to find it. It could harm the fish. Give a few days to adjust and come back out on its own.

 

[Gareth elliott]

Do you have a well fitting lid? If not check around the tank.

If you do probably buried in the sand. Dont go looking for him can stress them out. They can stay buried for quite sometime a week would be pretty normal and longer would not be uncommon.

 

[Buddy1234]

Yep, he is probably in the sand. Give him some time and he will reappear.

 

[khushtram]

Yes I have the tank covered well. I keep a 3 inch sand bed and no I won’t poke around lol. Normally when I know a fish is a goner I let the cuc take care of (circle of life)

 

[khushtram]

Thanks guys and gals. This gives me a peace of mind. The little guy was swimming with my mandarin yesterday looking for pods so I know the transition wasn’t too stressful for him. I’ll wait it out and see if it reappears I didn’t think it would take weeks!

 

[A sea K]

Thats a good sign! Don't be alarmed if he goes MIA again over the next few weeks, sometimes they poke around a bit then dive into the sand for a few days and then repeat until they feel completely comfortable.

 

[michael giordano]

I have owned many leopard wrasses and they are my favorite fish, give her time and when she comes out try to feed right away multiple times, because you won’t always see her when you feed at first. it might take months for them to acclimate. They are from a difrent time zone which means they are generally out when your tank lights are off. Just a tip when buying leopard wrasses, always buy one that was in a tank that had sand. If not don’t buy it, they generally are stressed out and will bury themselves forever and pass from exhaustion. Try live foods at first as well to get them interested in eating.

 

[Indiana Reefin]

I had a blue star that hid in the sand for a week..
Perfectly normal

 

[ankloss]

Hello everyone, I added a tiny leopard wrasse to my tank last night after dropping for about 1 hour. At the lfs he was very active and eating of course so I know I had a healthy specimen. After doing him into the tank all my other fish came to meet him as usual and no one showed any aggression towards him as I like to keep peaceful tankmates. My issue is it is now 24hrs later and I come home from work to look at my new fish and he is nowhere to be found. My biggest fear is that my cuc got to him since he was only .5 inches big. Are they shy creatures and need time? Or was he crab food.

Hello is normal, is on the sand or under rock, I have my wrasse now 2 years, and is take time for this a feeling good in tank. To now my wrasse is the boss of this tank
Andreas

 

[khushtram]

Yeah it took her about 3 days. Mine is a blue spot leopard. She is now swimming with the rest of my fishes. Thanks everyone

 

[Aetius]

Reading this gives me hope.
I bought a 2 inch leopard wrasse. After acclimation, when added to tank it went straight for the sand bed. Day 2 got out for about 10min, then back to sand. Now is day 5 and still in the sand. I will be patient with her