Melanurus wrasse acting strange

[peterire]

My melanueus wrasse is acting strange today. i’ve had it about 8 months and never seen it sit on the sand like this. Its mouth is constantly open and seems to be breathing kinda heavy. (Thats sand on its nose btw, I saw it wake later than normal).
Any ideas?
All other fish fine

 

[peterire]

Ok, so watching there and my yellow tang came over to inspect then nipped at the wrasses tail..! The tang is the boss of the tank but never saw them have an issue. Wonder did this start it or is the tang jus sensing weakness..?!

 

[blaxsun]

Rough morning? Woke up on the wrong side of the substrate? Have you given him a seaweed treat yet?

 

[peterire]

Rough morning? Woke up on the wrong side of the substrate? Have you given him a seaweed treat yet?

Gave the tang some seaweed there, but now hes back to hassling the wrasse!

 

[blaxsun]

Gave the tang some seaweed there, but now hes back to hassling the wrasse!

I find individually-wrapped (rubber-banded) rocks work best for the competitive eaters.

 

[threebuoys]

Can't tell anything from the photos due to the blue light.

Is the wrasse not swimming at all? Is he eating?

Are other fish in tank are acting normally?

Do you have a qt tank you could move him to for observation and possible treatment?

 

[peterire]

Can't tell anything from the photos due to the blue light.

Is the wrasse not swimming at all? Is he eating?

Are other fish in tank are acting normally?

Do you have a qt tank you could move him to for observation and possible treatment?

It will swim for a few seconds here and there, then back to the sand.
havent seen him eat.
Other fish acting normal. Apart form the yellow tang that was picking on the wrasse. Ive put up a mirror to distract the tang.
No qt tank

 

[threebuoys]

Was he eating well before this behavior and was he flashing ( scratching his gills on sand)? Can you get some pics with white light?

 

[peterire]

Was he eating well before this behavior and was he flashing ( scratching his gills on sand)? Can you get some pics with white light?

I didnt notice him not eating. I noticed today he came out of the sand way later than normal, and had some sand on its nose. Not seen any flashing or scratching of gills.

best pic i can get for now.

 

[peterire]

lying flat on its side now at the back of the tank..

not looking good

 

[threebuoys]

@Jay Hemdal any ideas ?

 

[peterire]

moved around a bit but then straight back down.

How long do I give it before I put it out of its misery..