How long do wrasses live?

[tcoral]

About a month ago I lost my yellow coris wrasse that was approx +5 years old (one of my first saltwater fish and even survived a carpet surf incident). Then this morning found my mystery wrasse dead and he was at least 4 years old too. Just wondering old age or if it could be aggression from another fish like my haliquin tusk (though these wrasses were big, I think too big to be picked on by the tusk. This morning I found the mystery with its stomach missing but that could have happened after it died.

 

[tcoral]

well according to this site, I guess they could have died of old age since they say on average they live 4-6 years .:

http://www.fishforums.com/forum/wra...mystery-wrasse-pseudocheilinus-ocellatus.html

 

[Curious George]

That's news to me. I thought a mystery would live a lot longer than that. I'll be darned. I'd still say that you could have a sniper picking off fish. That's two in one month and I don't really believe in coincidences.

The tusk could have went canibal and now has a taste for fish.....especially if the guts were gone as if someone had taken a bite out of the mystery.

 

[tcoral]

I could tell my yellow was on the way out since he was acting his age (getting up later, was still doing his usual stuff, but slower, until I didn't see him anymore). He had gotten very large, so I don't think anybody would have messed with him on their own. The mystery wrasse was a surprise though, and I wonder if he met with fowl play.

 

[Curious George]

Hmmm.... It's hard to judge age. What I mean is, unless the fish is small (Juenile Size and characteristics) when you first get it, who knows how old it is?

Just curious--pardon the pun=-)--but what else is in the tank?

 

[SDguy]

My oldest wrasse was a lubbocks fairy wrasse. I got it small. It grew very large. After about 5 years, it began to just look old, for lack of a better term. Eventually it started to eat less. Vision wasn't great, so it would miss food. Over many months it slowly withered away. It was never bothered by any other fish.

 

[tcoral]

Hmmm.... It's hard to judge age. What I mean is, unless the fish is small (Juenile Size and characteristics) when you first get it, who knows how old it is?

Just curious--pardon the pun=-)--but what else is in the tank?

My oldest wrasse was a lubbocks fairy wrasse. I got it small. It grew very large. After about 5 years, it began to just look old, for lack of a better term. Eventually it started to eat less. Vision wasn't great, so it would miss food. Over many months it slowly withered away. It was never bothered by any other fish.

Yes, the yellow wrasse I got when he was very small, maybe an inch to inch and a half, and he grew to 4+" and was just acting old twords the end like you said SDguy. My mystery, when I got him as a prize in a frag swap was bigger, and he did grow too, but not by much which probably means he was older when I got him than my yellow wrasse.

I do have tangs and a pair of dwarf Hawaiian moray eels (believe me I was thinking maybe an eel too), but both of these guys were too large for my eels to mess with and they've been in the tank together for years.

 

[rsl3]

I would keep an eye on your other fish. I no a store that has had a red corris for 9 years. Could be just due to age but keep a close eye on the other fish

 

[reefergeorge]

My oldest wrasse was a lubbocks fairy wrasse. I got it small. It grew very large. After about 5 years, it began to just look old, for lack of a better term. Eventually it started to eat less. Vision wasn't great, so it would miss food. Over many months it slowly withered away. It was never bothered by any other fish.

Exactly how my coral beauty went after 6 yrs. His eyes looked fogged and he would eat less and hide more. After a couple months of that he died.