Sorry about that. Thanks for the question. You know, most cleaner type wrasses are very difficult to keep but some are quite easy. An example on one extreme are the various hogfish which as juveniles, are very prolific cleaners of larger fish. This are very sturdy animals that do well in captivity. An example of an actual cleaner wrasse would be the common blue cleaner wrasses collected in Africa. For whatever reason, they eat right away in captivity and do really well. I think eating is the biggest hurdle with these fish and the balckspot is one we have been working with for some time now. We get them to eat pretty fast after they come in and the reports we have gotten from customers is that they continue to eat in tanks. I think that the bad experiences some people have had with these fish could because of how they are handled and where they are collected. The ones we get in do great.
Now I will say that I agree with you that no cleaner wrasse should really be listed as a beginner fish. But, if a beginner wanted to try one for the first time, this is the one we would recommend based on our expereince with it. That is the reason for the beginner tag. If you are still interested in one, give it a try. We will make sure we send one that is fat and eating well or we won't send you one at all. Hope that helps.
