Ruby Longfin Wrasse Hiding in DT after QT

JaaxReef · Dec 10, 2020

So I had a Ruby Longfin and Pintail Wrasse in QT for a few weeks and did the usual treatments and observations. Both fish ate very well, seemed outgoing, and showed no signs of disease during those weeks.

My QT and DT have nearly identical salinities, so I simply put the fish in a specimen container and scooped them in with my hand to add to the main display when lights were very dim.

Both wrasses exhibited some stress when they were added, but that’s typical. No aggression from tank mates or anything.
The pintail has been out and about doing great since being added and getting along with everyone. The Ruby Longfin has yet to be seen since that first night and we are coming up on two days without a trace. Do you think it is just hiding out and getting acclimated? I definitely have some holes in my rocks large enough for him to tuck in and hide...

GoReefin · Dec 10, 2020

Some wrasses take several days to start coming out. I'd hold off on breaking up the rockwork to search for him for a while longer.

JaaxReef · Dec 10, 2020

Gjunon said:
Some wrasses take several days to start coming out. I'd hold off on breaking up the rockwork to search for him for a while longer.

I figured that was the case. I’ve had a few sand burying wrasses stay in the sand for a week before coming out... but for some reason I needed the reassurance.

GoReefin · Dec 10, 2020

JaaxReef said:
I figured that was the case. I’ve had a few sand burying wrasses stay in the sand for a week before coming out... but for some reason I needed the reassurance.

I know what you mean! Super nerve wracking at times!

JaaxReef · Dec 11, 2020

Still no sign of him today... hopefully soon! He was well fed in QT so even a week without too much food shouldn’t be detrimental.

JaaxReef · Dec 12, 2020

He peeked out last night when the lights were blue for a bit, I now know where his hideout is... seemed healthy and fine to me! Maybe I’ll see him more today and get him eating.

GoReefin · Dec 12, 2020

JaaxReef said:
He peeked out last night when the lights were blue for a bit, I now know where his hideout is... seemed healthy and fine to me! Maybe I’ll see him more today and get him eating.

Awesome glad to hear he is doing good.

KrisReef · Dec 12, 2020

Ever spent a week in a hospital?
You would hide too if it happened to you.

JaaxReef · Dec 12, 2020

KrisReef said:
Ever spent a week in a hospital?
You would hide too if it happened to you.

One week... haha. Imagine 3 or 4! Yuck.

JaaxReef · Dec 13, 2020

Other than his quick peek two nights ago, haven’t seen him since. Hopefully he is still doing ok. Any chance he is out hunting for food in the dark to stay alive? I have a ton of worms and amphipods/copepods.

JaaxReef · Dec 15, 2020

I dumped in two cubes of frozen at one time as an experiment. The wrasse came out and ate a fair amount and then went back in hiding. Haha. I guess I know it is alive and well and is just being a little drama queen getting adjusted and coming out more...

GoReefin · Dec 15, 2020

JaaxReef said:
I dumped in two cubes of frozen at one time as an experiment. The wrasse came out and ate a fair amount and then went back in hiding. Haha. I guess I know it is alive and well and is just being a little drama queen getting adjusted and coming out more...

Hopefully he will start getting more comfortable and be out more.

JaaxReef · Dec 15, 2020

No aggression from anyone... so eventually he should. The fact that he just ate makes me feel better.

Variant · Dec 15, 2020

I'm assuming you ran your own QT, but is there any chance that it's sleep pattern is different from the light schedule on your DT? I know sand burrowing wrasses sometimes get "jet lag" and need to acclimate to a new light/day schedule.

If you're worried about it getting food, perhaps it makes sense to add some live tigger pods into the DT at night weekly or twice a week in case it's out and about hunting at night. That's what I'd do if I became extremely worried about its health.

JaaxReef · Dec 15, 2020

Good ideas. My QT ran the lights on a similar schedule and he was out all the time and ate well. I think it’s just the stress of the larger tank as larger fish around? Even if there isn’t aggression?

There tons of worms and amphipods and pods everywhere (I had the tank fallow for 60 days a month ago and they went wild) so I’m not too worried about it getting some snacks in between meals. Just nice to see him eat some larger meatier foods in the tank.

Variant · Dec 15, 2020

JaaxReef said:
Good ideas. My QT ran the lights on a similar schedule and he was out all the time and ate well. I think it’s just the stress of the larger tank as larger fish around? Even if there isn’t aggression?

There tons of worms and amphipods and pods everywhere (I had the tank fallow for 60 days a month ago and they went wild) so I’m not too worried about it getting some snacks in between meals. Just nice to see him eat some larger meatier foods in the tank.

When did you catch and release the wrasse into your DT? WAs it closer to the time when the wrasse normally burrows?

I actually have a wrasse in QT right now and my plan was to catch it maybe 30-60 minutes before its usual burrowing time. That way when I catch and release it into my DT and when it eventually burrows (which it will immediately), it'll be in sync with its normal schedule.

JaaxReef · Dec 15, 2020

Variant said:
When did you catch and release the wrasse into your DT? WAs it closer to the time when the wrasse normally burrows?

I actually have a wrasse in QT right now and my plan was to catch it maybe 30-60 minutes before its usual burrowing time. That way when I catch and release it into my DT and when it eventually burrows (which it will immediately), it'll be in sync with its normal schedule.

Same approach I took. I caught and put it in just before lights out, along with the Pintail wrasse which was out and about the next day. Haha. I feel like this other fish just has a more cautious personality and is adapting slower.

JaaxReef · Dec 16, 2020

I figured out the root of the problem. I caught my tiny Blue Jaw Trigger I have chasing him around if he sees the wrasse. Doesn’t bother the pintail, so it may be the size difference. Took the trigger out since I want a peaceful tank and we’ll see how things go. Trigger is down in QT until I can find a buyer.

JaaxReef · Dec 17, 2020

Trigger sold in 3 hours yesterday... ha! Must be a lot of reefers monitoring Craigslist.

Slowly the poor wrasse is coming out more frequently. I bet he’ll be out a lot more in a week after recovering from the trauma. He does have a few bites on his fins, but I bet it grows back. Still eating well every time I put food in the tank.