Royal Gramma harem

[norfolkgarden]

June update. Complete failure.

Last visible gramma was on May 5, 2019. Less than a year after adding the group.

The main failure was too many other fish in the tank.
I would never describe yellow 'coris' wrasse as aggressive.
But that was enough to tip the scale.

From others comments, it is possible to keep several in a large tank.

I won't be attempting this again.
RIP Grammas.
[emoji17]

 

[mta_morrow]

I’m sorry to hear this. I was really hoping it would end well as I love royal grammas.

It has take mine nearly a year, but he now is visible most of the time. Eats with his tank mates, and ventures away from home a lot.

Looking forward to your next adventure!

And thanks for documenting this.

 

[Pbh-reef]

Sorry this didn’t work for you

 

[John Minnix]

Boo. That stinks. I've had one gramma 18 months now and its doing great. I bought a previous gramma that died almost immediately. It was the only fish in a cycled (I think) 133 gallon tank when I added it. Maybe they are tricky?

I saw a bunch of grammas living on the reef in Jamaica. Very cool. They appear to just hang out around their cave like they do in my tank.

 

[OrionN]

I am sorry your harem did not work out. They are really quite shy and docile. A lot of mouth show but does not bite anybody. I had harem of them in the past but not in current tank. I have too many wrasses.

 

[Salty Lemon]

June update. Complete failure.

Last visible gramma was on May 5, 2019. Less than a year after adding the group.

The main failure was too many other fish in the tank.
I would never describe yellow 'coris' wrasse as aggressive.
But that was enough to tip the scale.

From others comments, it is possible to keep several in a large tank.

I won't be attempting this again.
RIP Grammas.
[emoji17]

I did not like this post at all. Consider yourself hugged.

 

[NY_Caveman]

That is a bummer indeed. Sorry to hear, brother.

 

[Dsnakes]

That’s sad to hear. I took a shot with 3 in my 125 and so far all is going well. They flex at each other from time to time but all are always out in the open.

 

[norfolkgarden]

That’s sad to hear. I took a shot with 3 in my 125 and so far all is going well. They flex at each other from time to time but all are always out in the open.

That is awesome! Glad they are working out for you.

Miss them. They are beautiful fish. Still can't believe several 1" yellow 'coris' wrasse were enough to freak them out.

Hope yours do well.
[emoji846]

 

[Dsnakes]

That is awesome! Glad they are working out for you.

Miss them. They are beautiful fish. Still can't believe several 1" yellow 'coris' wrasse were enough to freak them out.

Hope yours do well.
[emoji846]

Thanks! I’ve got 2 yellow Coris as well. But they were all added fairly close in time.

 

[Mortie31]

June update. Complete failure.

Last visible gramma was on May 5, 2019. Less than a year after adding the group.

The main failure was too many other fish in the tank.
I would never describe yellow 'coris' wrasse as aggressive.
But that was enough to tip the scale.

From others comments, it is possible to keep several in a large tank.

I won't be attempting this again.
RIP Grammas.
[emoji17]

That’s a real bummer, I’m surprised the wrasse had such an effect on them..

 

[JAM-MAN]

Sorry to hear this. Loved seeing them on the reef in the Caribbean, especially when they lived upside down under a ledge! I have one, who is surprisingly capable at fending for himself. Started out in a quarantine tank with a Tanaka Pigmy Wrasse (another great fish) who was spending all his time above the return outlet. Thought he was ill until I saw the Gramma doing the open mouth thing and the Wrasse retreating to his pathetic lair. Separated them, Gramma into the DT with two much larger clownfish, a Pearly Jawfish, and a watchman goby. The Gramma found his hole, and is now bustling about the tank when fed. Not shy, in fact had a few face offs with the jawfish and even poked his head into the jawfishes hole like "bring it on". Now ignore each other.

Thought about your idea, thanks for sharing your sad outcome. I'll stick with one until I get to 100G and reassess.

 

[bam123]

Have seen grammas and black cap basslet harems while diving. They are all pretty well spaced. Wouldn't try in a 75 gallon unless it's at least 48 inches long and you have a ton of caves/hiding places. I would keep odd numbers, get them small, and add them all at once. Good luck!

 

[VR28man]

This subject interests me and I'll read the whole thread.

However, something I found interested me which might be relevant here:

Fairy basslet groups live in a social structure consisting of dominance hierarchies arranged by size, with the largest fish at each coral head being the dominant one (Freeman and Alevizon 1983). The diet of the fairy basslet consists primarily of free-living planktonic crustaceans, but the species will also eat parasitic forms (ectoparasites picked from the bodies of other fishes; Böhlke and Randall 1963).


In the Caribbean, the species has been used as a model to understand the effects of interactions between size classes and the effects of density dependence on juvenile recruitment and mortality (Webster and Hixon 2000; Webster 2003, 2004). These studies showed that the fairy basslet occupies the undersides of open reef ledges where it lives in dominance hierarchies maintained by aggression between size classes such that larger fish occupy prime plankton-feeding positions closer to the outer edge of the ledge (Webster and Hixon 2000). In an experimental manipulation, Webster (2004) found that juveniles transplanted to reefs with adults were more likely to suffer mortality than juveniles transplanted to reefs with no or few adults. This was because in the presence of adults, juveniles tended to feed at the back of aggregations, where feeding rates were generally lower and predators were more abundant.

Fairy Basslet (Gramma loreto) - Species Profile

Species summary for Fairy Basslet (Gramma loreto)

nas.er.usgs.gov

So you better keep them well fed to keep them all alive and minimize the effects of inevitable violence, it seems. Also, it's likely the male will dominate and pick on others.

That being said, John Tullock (marine bio PhD who ran an LFS for many years and wrote for TFH) recommened a 75 gallon with lots of rock for a 6 gramma harem. If you made it 125 (6 ft) he recommeneded a rock section and an open section with blue chromis. Two species well known for dominance hierarchies. . But still it sounds like an awesome tank.

 

[bam123]

If you set up with multiple overhangs with various angles, shouldn't be a problem. Would look great with neon gobies, and peterson cleaner shrimps.

 

[lilgrounchuck]

Dang. I saw the title of this thread and the first few posts seemed promising, so I clicked to the last page and the first post on this page started with “total failure.” I was hoping to see a different result because one of those fish adds amazing color and movement, let alone a harem. First thought that came to my mind though is that they’re listed on sites as peaceful, but mine was a total b-hole. It was constantly starting problems with other fish, then I went out of town for a week. When I came back that guy wasn’t swimming around, everyone else was, and I had an algae problem. Do the math. So,this post had me hopeful. I’ve since added a chalk bass and while he doesn’t add the striking colors the gramma does, he’s a dope butt ba$$let

 

[mfinn]

I followed this thread from the start and was also disappointed at the end. But I have also talked with others who have been successful keeping multiple royal grammas together.
I still want to try 4-5 in my 240.

 

[Squidward]

I have 2 blackcap basslets in my 300g. I had the bigger one first, added the smaller one months later. Both doing good. No fighting etc.

 

[mfinn]

I have 2 blackcap basslets in my 300g. I had the bigger one first, added the smaller one months later. Both doing good. No fighting etc.

Yeah I had a pair of Black Caps for 2 years that got along great. Even hung out on the same end of the tank, and had a royal gramma at the same time.
I'd do another pair of Black Caps, if the price wasn't so high right now.

 

[Dsnakes]

All fish are different, some will have success and some failure. My 3 were just fine in my 125g. Plenty of rock work for each to stakeout claim.