Flasher wrasse - add female to male

[lee_d_m]

Hi

So I picked up a male Carpenters wrasse last week who is now doing great in QT.

I would have liked to have picked up two females as well at the same time but I just couldn't find any.

I'm still looking at the moment but I've now just read a couple of articles which state that the females should be added first.

So, my question is, is it still possible to add the females after the male, and secondly, if this is ok, would it be better to have all 3 in QT together or to put the females into QT after the male has moved to the DT. (QT is 24 gal nano)

Thanks

Lee

 

[eatbreakfast]

In a 24g tank I probably wouldnt add the females. A part of their heirarchy is the male displaying at them, which keeps them female, but also can be stressful to them and in a small tank there are just not enough places to escape and hide.

 

[evolved]

^ Agree.

I don't recommend flashers for tanks less than 3 feet in length actually, just for this reason.

 

[ca1ore]

Absent the tank size problem, I cannot recall seeing female carpenter wrasses in a long time. I think maybe there were some on DD a while back, but that's about it.

 

[evolved]

Yeah, it's tough to obtain most female Paracheilinus.

 

[eatbreakfast]

...and most will transition to male in a short time anyway.

 

[lee_d_m]

Thanks guys,

So, assuming I was able to get a female or two, would I be ok to add them to the DT once they'd been through QT. so essentially the first time they meet the male would be when I put them in the DT (the DT is 4.5ft and 650 litres so is big enough).

What are the chances of the females turning male during QT (I usually QT for 6 weeks)

Thanks

Lee

 

[evolved]

There's certainly a chance they would. The smaller they are (and hence mostly juvi), the better your chances would be to preventing a transition however.

 

[eatbreakfast]

There's certainly a chance they would. The smaller they are (and hence mostly juvi), the better your chances would be to preventing a transition however.

Yup, and adding them to a display your size should be fine too.

 

[lee_d_m]

ok, excellent, that's given me some things to think about

Thanks a lot

Lee