Flasher and Fairy Wrasses are fighting very rough...?

[BlackTip]

In DT: male Carpenter, male McCokser, male Blue Flasher, female Exquisite, and most recent edition Solon Yellowhead Fairy Wrasse (male I think).

The Carpenter was the first in the tank, and he is the dominant male Wrasse. I introduced the Solon Wrasse 3 weeks ago. The Carpenter chased him and beat on him for 3 days, then left him alone after that. There is occasional flashing and chasing among all Wrasses, but nothing out of line.

Last night, right before they went to sleep, the Solon and the Carpenter were fighting bad. Locking jaws, doing circle around each other, biting, and no one is giving in nor running away. I turned off the light for few minutes, and when I turned it back on, they were back at it.

Are they establishing dominance, or one of them will kill the other? Both are gorgeous fishes, and I hate to loose any of them.

 

[Cliving1]

This is in your 325? Seems odd. There should be plenty of room for them to go their separate ways. I personally have not seen this but hopefully someone can chime in and help!

 

[BlackTip]

This is in your 325? Seems odd. There should be plenty of room for them to go their separate ways. I personally have not seen this but hopefully someone can chime in and help!

Yes, they are in 325g. I love wrasses. They are the alternative to the hard-to-keep Anthias. I've been adding one wrasse every 2 months or so, and I was hoping to keep doing this until I have 8-10. I hope I don't have a nasty surprise when I get home today.

 

[ksicard]

I would purchase a acclimation box. I'm a wrasse lover myself and the acclimation box has proven to be a valuable tool. It allows you to judge fish compatibility without the wrasses beating on each other. Sometimes with wrasses you may get a bad egg so to speak and the 2 fish in question might not work out. An acclimation box lets you see their behavior and gives you the option to easily remove the new wrasse if need be.

 

[brett559]

I had two flashers (McCoskers and Carpenters) and a fairy (Orange-back fairy) and they were always nipping at each other. Seems like they always had little nips in their fins.

 

[Marshall O]

I've had very good luck adding juveniles. The established, dominant male(s) will basically ignore the new comers, since they are juveniles. Plus they are cheaper and will live longer. You just need patience for them to transition male ☺

Sent from my XT1565 using Tapatalk

 

[BlackTip]

Fortunately, I didn't see any major damage to either one when I went home yesterday. Both are swimming and eating.

I am nervous about adding more now. I want to add 2-3 fairy and a Lionspot flasher....

 

[Cliving1]

Not really an expert here, but are you adding least to most aggressive? Especially with so many that should be a focus. Sometimes changing the rockwork up will help as well.