Why is damsel hiding?

[corwise]

My Damsel in my 25 gal tank is acting kind of strange, and I was wondering if anyone had any ideas on why. The tank is just him, a blue damsel, and a small golden wrasse. There are a few corals. They've all be in there over a month, and the damsel has always been out and about. Last week he suddenly disappeared for two days, hiding deep in the rock. He wouldn't even come out to feed. He suddenly showed up again, eating a little, but much more timid, staying back in the rock a lot. The wrasse and him don't bother each other, no one is fighting, it's just very un-damsel like, if that makes sense. Water quality is fine, just wondering if anyone had any ideas on what would make him act like this and if there is anything I can/should do. Thanks.

Dave

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

How old, what species, and how big is the damsel? Same thing for the wrasse. There is a chance that it could be sick even though there are no outward signs of it.

 

[corwise]

Both purchased a month ago at Vet-Pets in Midwest city.

Damsel: Blue Damsel, about 1 in long.

Wrasse: Golden Wrasse, 1.25 in long.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

I was hoping to narrow that down a little more than Blue and Golden because both the wrasse and the damsel have various species that are called the same name.

I assume you mean Blue Damsel (Chrysiptera cyanea)

Yellow Coris Wrasse (Halichoeres chrysus)

If the damsel is the one noted above and has only been in the tank for a month, it's probably not enough time for him to establish territory and get used to his new surroundings. Also, the more that you have your hands in the tank and are tinkering with things, the longer it will take for it to get used to things. I would just give it a month or two before it starts acting like a typical damsel.

 

[corwise]

Travis,

My apologies on not being clear. My "Pocket Expert Guide to Marine Fish" list it as the Blue Damselfish. It's basically the picture you gave me, but it has a yellow tail and a slight yellow underbelly. It is not the smaller version usually called the Yellowtail Damsel.
The wrasse is the Yellow Coris/Canary/Golden wrasse. I'll just wait a while and see how he does then, was just curious if I should be worried. Thanks for the help.

Dave

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

No problem. Now I know what damsel you are talking about. I can't think of the species name off of the top of my head, but that yellow coloration is a tool that you can use to tell if it's a male or female. I can't remember if the yellow belly indicates a male or female. I'm brainfried today from work