Odd Royal pencil wrasse behavior?

Breakthecycle2 · Dec 5, 2015

So I picked an awesome looking male royal pencil wrasse yesterday and put him in QT. He's just in there with a baby regal angel. He is currently swimming at the surface, sticking his head out of the water and spitting water? I've seen this behavior on a tile fish before as well. Should I be concerned? He seems normal otherwise.

eatbreakfast · Dec 6, 2015

Breakthecycle2 said:
So I picked an awesome looking male royal pencil wrasse yesterday and put him in QT. He's just in there with a baby regal angel. He is currently swimming at the surface, sticking his head out of the water and spitting water? I've seen this behavior on a tile fish before as well. Should I be concerned? He seems normal otherwise.

That's not normal for a pencil wrasse. That is the wrasse trying to keep swimming up to avoid danger, but has run out of vertical water space. He was likely stressed during transport, tried to bury in the bag and was unable, so is following it's next instinct for survival, which is swim away. It should settle down relatively quickly. Sometimes directing it with your hand to cover will settle it.

Breakthecycle2 · Dec 6, 2015

eatbreakfast said:
That's not normal for a pencil wrasse. That is the wrasse trying to keep swimming up to avoid danger, but has run out of vertical water space. He was likely stressed during transport, tried to bury in the bag and was unable, so is following it's next instinct for survival, which is swim away. It should settle down relatively quickly. Sometimes directing it with your hand to cover will settle it.

That makes sense. Thank you. I also witnessed more odd behavior. He slept vertically in a PVC pipe last night.

Sabellafella · Dec 6, 2015

Many wrasses sleep in the most obserd crazyest ways possible lol but i have a wrasse that kept dipping his face out of water due to brook so be on the lookout

Breakthecycle2 · Dec 6, 2015

Sabellafella said:
Many wrasses sleep in the most obserd crazyest ways possible lol but i have a wrasse that kept dipping his face out of water due to brook so be on the lookout

Mine stopped doing now.

Orly20 · Oct 12, 2017

eatbreakfast said:
That's not normal for a pencil wrasse. That is the wrasse trying to keep swimming up to avoid danger, but has run out of vertical water space. He was likely stressed during transport, tried to bury in the bag and was unable, so is following it's next instinct for survival, which is swim away. It should settle down relatively quickly. Sometimes directing it with your hand to cover will settle it.

Hi there,

i know this is an old thread but i was wondering if the pencil fish stopped spitting water and made it out of qt?

Thanks