Yellow coris wrasse

[Reefrats]

I got a yellow coris wrasse two days ago. He was out and feeding the first night and next morning. They he was hiding under the sand for the past day and a half. We noticed him getting blown around and blown up against a rock where the sand was blown down to the glass. I scooped him out into a container. He was very thin and not breathing. I wanted to get him out before my pistol shrimp pulled him under a rock to eat him because I didn’t want an ammonia spike. Now I’m reading that they can play dead. I’m hoping I didn’t get rid of a live fish. I really liked him and I watched him in the container for a while before tossing him. Was he really dead?

 

[andrewey]

Based on your description, it sounds like he was dead. It is true that they will "play dead", but if they are being blown around the tank under no control of their own, it likely died. If you found it under the sand and it wasn't moving, then I would say it was probably still alive as that's pretty normal behavior for them.

 

[Reefrats]

Based on your description, it sounds like he was dead. It is true that they will "play dead", but if they are being blown around the tank under no control of their own, it likely died. If you found it under the sand and it wasn't moving, then I would say it was probably still alive as that's pretty normal behavior for them.

Thanks... I saw his tail under the sand and he scurried out. Then we were looking around for where he went and saw him laying there and when I went to get him he got caught in the gyre current and blown around. I scooped him into the container with tank water and watched him for a while and he was laying on the bottom thin and not breathing. He definitely looked dead. Just freaking out from these videos showing them playing dead.