Melanurus wrasse attacking new clown tang

Buckwilds · Mar 25, 2018

Most of the research I've done says that generally Melanurus are generally peaceful. Well mine is a jerk. I just put the clown tang in yesterday and don't want to take him back out unless I have to. Is there a way to curb this aggression so that they can eventually get along? The next thing I'm thinking about doing is trying to make an egg crate cage for the clown (since my dottyback has decided to jump in on the action since the clown tang has started to get beat up). Does someone online sell a large breeding net or something that would give the tang some decent swimming room? He's only a few inches long, the wrasse has him by an inch and a half. Anything I do should probably be done fairly hastily as the clown tang has visible marks just from a few hours of it (I saw them start to go after him last night and turned the lights out early so that everyone would go to sleep).

dbl · Mar 25, 2018

An acclamation box would probably be best. In time, hopefully they'll get used to each others comapny. You can make one pretty easily if you have eggcrate laying around.

4FordFamily · Mar 25, 2018

Large male melanarus can be quite aggressive, actually. I’ve not heard of many picking on large, aggressive acanthurus tang species but there’s a first time for everything.

I venture to guess your tank is smaller and lightly stocked? What size tank and what other tankmates?

Sipec · Mar 25, 2018

I’ve heard putting a picture of a giant fish against the glass can help, and moving the rocks around if you can

eatbreakfast · Mar 26, 2018

What exactly is happening? Is the melanurus male or female? Is it relentlessy chasing the clown tang or is it "attacking" the sides of the body? Is the clown tang fleeing? Shimmying it's tail? "Defensively" putting it's body sideways?

Buckwilds · Mar 26, 2018

So I've built an enclosure that's half the length of my tank out of eggcrate but can't manage to net him. The tank is heavily stocked (65g with 25g sump:2 clowns, 2 bangais, small yellow tang, melanurus, splendid dottyback, and this clown tang) with lots of rock amd filtration. Parameters are ideal levels. The wrasse is male. He is definitely attacking his sides and just pecks at him every minute or two that I don't tap on the glass to make him go away. The tang is fleeing and trying to wedge himself in between rocks and yes flopping sideways. He has visible scrapes on his side currently, not sure if that's from the rocks or the wrasse.

eatbreakfast · Mar 26, 2018

Buckwilds said:
So I've built an enclosure that's half the length of my tank out of eggcrate but can't manage to net him. The tank is heavily stocked (65g with 25g sump:2 clowns, 2 bangais, small yellow tang, melanurus, splendid dottyback, and this clown tang) with lots of rock amd filtration. Parameters are ideal levels. The wrasse is male. He is definitely attacking his sides and just pecks at him every minute or two that I don't tap on the glass to make him go away. The tang is fleeing and trying to wedge himself in between rocks and yes flopping sideways. He has visible scrapes on his side currently, not sure if that's from the rocks or the wrasse.

Pecking at the sides is the melanurus acting as a facultative cleaner. He is picking off parasites.

Also, a clown tang will quickly outgrow a 65g.

Buckwilds · Mar 26, 2018

eatbreakfast said:
Pecking at the sides is the melanurus acting as a facultative cleaner. He is picking off parasites.

Also, a clown tang will quickly outgrow a 65g.

Oh, I'm an idiot. I thought I read that they're a smaller tang when I saw him in the store but it appears they get much larger. I must have been looking at a different tang and confused it. I'm upgrading to whatever I can find between 180 and 220 used in about 18 months. Do you think I'm screwed if he's about 2.5 to 3 inches now? Thanks for the help by the way guys. And you think the melanurus is definitely just picking at parasites? He kind of dive bombs his sides it's not gentle like when my cleaner shrimp would hop on fish.

evolved · Mar 26, 2018

I see the 65g tank as the sole source of the issues here.

eatbreakfast · Mar 26, 2018

Buckwilds said:
Oh, I'm an idiot. I thought I read that they're a smaller tang when I saw him in the store but it appears they get much larger. I must have been looking at a different tang and confused it. I'm upgrading to whatever I can find between 180 and 220 used in about 18 months. Do you think I'm screwed if he's about 2.5 to 3 inches now? Thanks for the help by the way guys. And you think the melanurus is definitely just picking at parasites? He kind of dive bombs his sides it's not gentle like when my cleaner shrimp would hop on fish.

It should look like a stab with a twist of the body. I've never seen a tang just sit there and take aggression.

Buckwilds · Mar 26, 2018

That sounds like it could have been the case, I was trying to disrupt the behavior because I thought he was attacking him (at work now so I can't observe). I guess I'll just keep an eye on the tang and see if he gets any worse and throw him into the qt by himself if so. Thanks a bunch for the info.

ca1ore · Mar 26, 2018

Hoeven's is probably getting shots in while it can LOL; once/if the clown gets some size the wrasse is in for it ....

ca1ore · Mar 26, 2018

dbl said:
An acclamation box would probably be best.

What that? All the new fish gather around and applaud the newcomer ...... (OK, I have used this joke before; still amuses me though)?

Dragon52 · Mar 26, 2018

Completely Darken your tank for a day/24Hrs & they might settle down.

Cary Hover · Mar 27, 2018

My melanurus gets along with all my tangs, angels etc. but seems to love to eat snails when I am not looking and has depleted my crab population and loves small brittle stars.