Vertical swimming?

[saltyhog]

I have a McCosker's wrasse that has completed TTM and has looked great until the last 48 hours. Since then he hovers perfectly vertical with his head up. If I put food in the water he seems to swim almost normally and eats very well. There is not a mark on him and he still looks well fed.

I really expected to find him dead when I got home this evening but he looks pretty much the same and ate well again. What would cause this? I don't know of any injury but I can't rule it out.

 

[Jim C]

I have a McCosker's wrasse that has completed TTM and has looked great until the last 48 hours. Since then he hovers perfectly vertical with his head up. If I put food in the water he seems to swim almost normally and eats very well. There is not a mark on him and he still looks well fed.

I really expected to find him dead when I got home this evening but he looks pretty much the same and ate well again. What would cause this? I don't know of any injury but I can't rule it out.

I’ve had no success with wrasses lately, no matter what I do. But hopefully someone else can chime in. Sounds like it could be a swim bladder issue or injury.

#reefsquad
@evolved @eatbreakfast

 

[cmcoker]

Sounds like a injury to me, at least mine did this when he took a ride down the overflow.

If your tank is covered, it's possible he jumped and smacked the lid.

If he seems fine otherwise, and is eating. I would watch and wait.
Here's a link when mine took the trip to the sump. https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/mccoskers-wrasse-head-trauma.237624/#post-2777911
Video of the fish in there if you care to compare.

 

[Deinonych]

Sounds like a spinal injury. I've lost a couple of wrasses in QT from this. The most recent loss happened on the day he was supposed to be transferred to the DT. Got startled when I came in the room (it was early morning), and bashed his head against the glass top of the QT. He never recovered; his swimming got worse until he struggled to even stay upright.

If yours is still eating, that's a good sign. Sometimes they recover, sometimes they don't. It depends on the severity of the injury.

 

[Humblefish]

I agree with spinal injury. If it was the swim bladder the head would be pointing down, tail up. You are experiencing the opposite.

 

[ngoodermuth]

^ I agree, all you can do is wait and see at this point.

 

[saltyhog]

Thanks guys. That's pretty much the conclusion I had come to. My QT has a hard lid rather than a screen lid like my DT has. I bet that's how it occurred.

If fish are anything like people, the longer it goes without improvement the less likely recovery is to happen.

 

[Deinonych]

I've gone to screen tops on my QTs as a result of the losses. I wish I had figured it out earlier - I would have diagnosed it as a swim bladder problem until I witnessed the injury first-hand.

 

[saltyhog]

I've been truly lucky. First time for this after using the same set up for almost 5 years. Fortunately I have the material to build them, I'll try to get them built this week.