Leopard Wrasse Primer

[iamwrasseman]

Nick , with any living animal and these being fish its awesome that you are planning in such a way . many people dont prepare and then its 911 the day before they go on vacation . along with worrieng the whole vacation . i am somewhat fortunate that a few fellow reefers will always come and fish sit for me so it takes that tension off .
very good planning though ,i like it !

 

[this is me]

All of the three new black spotted wrasse came out today. Eat frozen mysis well. Still trying to get them eat pellets. They'll peck at it and then spit it out. I will give them a little more time to accept the pellets. My Splendid leopard didn't accept the pellets right away either when I first introduced it to the pellets.

Pecking at the rocks

Posing for the camera.

My Splendid wrasse. The color has shifted since first introduced. I think it's turning into a male. It's an aggressive little fish! It has been chasing around the new wrasse all day. I'm not sure what to do. I thought all leopard wrasse are suppose to be peaceful.

 

[this is me]

Wow, Just realized how much my splendid has changed in about 3 months.
More green on the head and fins.

 

[iamwrasseman]

thanks again for sharing Nick

 

[this is me]

My pleasure Dave. I wish I discovered these beautiful fish sooner. Been caught up in clowns. Lol

 

[iamwrasseman]

yes she is getting the green in the face and fins ,usually the begining of turning male . it happens so fast that you all of a sudden look in your tank and wonder where that fish came from ,lol .mine turned completly in three weeks

 

[Rickyrooz1]

My next tank is going to be a bare bottom, can I keep a Leopard wrasse or do they need the sand to sleep in?

 

[iamwrasseman]

they will certainly require a sand bed or it will stress them very much . im not saying it cant be done but they will go through hell trying to survive .

 

[this is me]

They will need sand for long term survival. You can put sand in a tuberware and the wrasse will find it and will sleep in it. I've heard people with bare bottom had success keeping wrasse this way.

 

[ataller]

Recently added a female meleagris to my 120G (60"x18"x26) reef tank sps/lps mix. Well established, I have two plump mandarins, and a 60G fuge in the fish room in the basement to restock the tank with pods. Other fish are 2 clowns, a multibarred angel, an orchid dotty back, and a 3" hepatus tang.

The leopard is healthy and MAC certified, so I couldn't pass her up. She was eating Mysis at the store, and eats mysis in my tank also. I have had her for 5 days now, sleep well, healthy looking, amazing fish. Wont eat pellets yet.

Two questions, there was another MAC certified female at the store, can I house the two of them together? Will they bicker? If one changes to male that is fine with me.

2nd question: she spends a good amount of time pacing in one corner of the tank. Back and forth up and down the wall. My tank isn't tiny, I was under the impression it was large enough for the leopard. Any idea why the pacing? Is it because she is new? Will it subside with time?

Thanks!

Adam

 

[iamwrasseman]

yes multiples of females are great ! i would get her asap
the fish you have is first quite delicate and i would assume she is acting crazy as a result from being out of a borderless ocean and i have had a couple acted in this way and they are now model citizens so dont be worried .also the addition of another female may give her a sense of comfort so i would definitely get the other female .

 

[Ralph ATL]

here is an update on mine:

I recently acquired another female MM, So now I have 2 MM and one MG Leopard wrasse along with my others....All are doing very well....just a great thread! Thanks!:rollface:

 

[ataller]

yes multiples of females are great ! i would get her asap
the fish you have is first quite delicate and i would assume she is acting crazy as a result from being out of a borderless ocean and i have had a couple acted in this way and they are now model citizens so dont be worried .also the addition of another female may give her a sense of comfort so i would definitely get the other female .

Last night mine ate some pellet. Today she ate everytime I fed, 3 times and has now figured out that I mean food.
Even better news, is that now she knows she has a good source of food, she has stopped her pacing and is now cruising the LR for pods.

I am not one to pass up advice encouraging me to buy a fish, so I am going to head to the LFS on the weekend to see if they still have the 2nd wrasse!

Thanks,

Adam

 

[iamwrasseman]

great tread about great fish between great people ? lol i may be stretching it a bit but who cares ! leopards are the awesomest !

 

[Ralph ATL]

great tread about great fish between great people ? lol i may be stretching it a bit but who cares ! leopards are the awesomest !

we usually agree, and even more now! lol

 

[iamwrasseman]

your the man Ralph ! great tread for sure . funny thing though it seems to be slowing down on new information and views on leopards . i myself have mixed leopards in one tank and leopards tamarins and a couple of coris wrasses in another then another tank has also mixed leopards and tamarins with a couple of cleaners and my fourth wrasse tank has all tamarins and a file fish along with a couple of gobies .
what in your leopard wrasses tank and how do they get along with other species etc . what do you all think about these wrasses as community fish and compatibility ? lets hear some feed back everyone !

 

[mike810]

hey guys, bought a leopard wrasse from my LFS about 1-2 months ago. She ate frozen mysis so I jumped on it quick. Introduced her to my tank and she dove for the sand right away ofc.

My lights come on from 6pm-1am. I only notice that she comes out during the morning hours picking at my rocks till about 4pm then goes to sleep in the sand the rest of the day/night. Shes fat so I assume shes eating up my pod population since shes not out to eat when I feed my tank at night.

I was able to find out where she sleeps and caught her. She is not in a container for the time being. How can I get her to adjust to my photoperiod instead of only coming during the morning hours?

TIA

 

[Matt G]

Update on mine, I still have 2 peacocks and a leopard.

Added 2 ornates a couple of weeks back, think I have lost one, but touch wood the other seems to be okay at the moment. Still early days though.

 

[iamwrasseman]

hey Mike turn off your lights for a couple of days and then resume you regular photoperiod , that should get any fish somewhat switched over to a new light regimine

 

[ataller]

Last night mine ate some pellet. Today she ate everytime I fed, 3 times and has now figured out that I mean food.
Even better news, is that now she knows she has a good source of food, she has stopped her pacing and is now cruising the LR for pods.

I am not one to pass up advice encouraging me to buy a fish, so I am going to head to the LFS on the weekend to see if they still have the 2nd wrasse!

Thanks,

Adam

I may have spoken too soon. Lights have been on for a couple hours and no leopard. I have a 1/4" mesh top on the tank, so she is in there somewhere.

Do they do this sometimes? Sleep all day? Or is this pretty much a sign she is dead?

Adam