Wrass Recommendations?

[crumbletop]

Hello all,

I'm looking for a wrass that will eat pods, bristle worms, etc, like a 6-line, but wouldn't be as belligerent as a 6-line. Also, I like the smaller size of the 6 line and the constant weaving in and out of the rocks that they do. Reef safe (mostly SPS tank) is a must. The tank is a 90 gallon.

Any ideas on Wrasses I should check out?

Other inhabitants will be 2 oscellaris clowns, a pygmy angel, and a firefish.

Future fish possibilities include a flame hawkfish, maybe a blenny of some sort, and maybe another small angel like a flame angel, but not sure on the angel.

Jack

 

[RichConley]

Any of the wrasses around that size/look are going to be in the same genus, and pretty beligerent.

If you're willing to go a little larger, look at the Halicoeres genus. Theres a bunch of absolutely GORGEOUS fish that top out around 5"


Check out
H. Melanurus
H. Iridis
H. Ornatissimus

etc. Just keep an eye on size, as some of the genus gets huge.

 

[crumbletop]

Will a 5 or 6" wrass be a problem with the other small fish I have? You are right, those are some great looking fish...

 

[jda]

Check out leopard wrasses.

 

[RichConley]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7809685#post7809685 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jda
Check out leopard wrasses.

Also great fish. Just a little bit tougher to get a good one. (they tend to be a little more delicate, and get beat up in shipping)

How small of fish are we talking here? Neither my Melanurus nor Iridis every bothered anything. I dont keep anything real small though. They eat small inverts(mini brittle stars, amphipods, flatworms,etc), so they have small mouths, and I wouldnt worry about them eating fish.

 

[crumbletop]

firefish is the smallest I have:

Yes, the leopard wrasses look cool. Time to read up! Thanks for all the input so far!

Jack

 

[bigdee65]

I have a potters wrasse which eats pods all day long!! They are much like the Leopard Wrasse but they tend to be a little easier to keep (in most cases).

 

[Kahuna Tuna]

Possum wrasse might be a good bet but they are very cryptic.

 

[RichConley]

Possums are the only other small peaceful wrasse I can think of, except the Pinkstreak wrasse. Theyre both very skittish though. As to the Potters wrasse, it IS a leopard wrasse.


That being said, I dont see any of the fish reccomended as being a problem with a firefish....

well....I had a seahorse startle a firefish to the point of jumping...so I dunno.

 

[jda]

Potters come from Hawaii which makes them somewhat better shippers. That article does a good job of outlining what a leopard needs, so certianly read it if you are considering one. If you can get one direct from HI, that might be best.

 

[crumbletop]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7811121#post7811121 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by RichConley
well....I had a seahorse startle a firefish to the point of jumping...so I dunno.

:lol:

 

[crumbletop]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7811215#post7811215 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jda
Potters come from Hawaii which makes them somewhat better shippers. That article does a good job of outlining what a leopard needs, so certianly read it if you are considering one. If you can get one direct from HI, that might be best.

Thanks. That does seem like a good article. I'm going to read up a bunch more on the suggestions above. Right now the potters is high on the list of possibilities.

 

[just dave]

A Pink Streaked wrasse would be a good choice. Behaves very much the same way a Sixline does but without the aggression and stays smaller. One of the Possums would works as well or in conjunction with a Pink Streaked. The Leopards and Halicoeres sp. get larger 'n the Sixline . The Halicoeres group have a tendency to pray on small shrimp and hermits especially as they get larger.

A couple of other things to consider.

A good many wrasses will eat the eggs of other fish and fish that have paired up (like Clowns) may be very hard on certain wrasses depending on the wrasse and the confines of the aquarium. Sometimes this happens even without a pairing but I've noticed it is more likely to happen if there is a pair formed when certain wrasses are introduced.

I'd also add the Hawk last (and keep an eye on it) as they can be quite belligerent to other smaller fish especially if they are already an established resident.

Here is a Pink Streaked.

 

[crumbletop]

Thanks, Dave!

 

[RichConley]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7811635#post7811635 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by just dave
The Halicoeres group have a tendency to pray on small shrimp and hermits especially as they get larger.

I dislike when people make generalizations about halicoeres. It tends to get used as a catch all genus, and there are a ton of fish in there, with a huge range of behavior.

YES, there are some that I wouldnt trust with shrimp, but most of the smaller ones are not going to give you a problem.

I've got an H. Iridis and an H. Melanurus, and they dont really bother anything (except flatworms)



Pinkstreaks are very cute though, they just dont do well with rambunctious tankmates...which I dont think will be too much of a problem with you.

 

[just dave]

Unless he specifically asks about a certain species, generalizations are all we can give and I'd rather be overly cautious in such a situation. I've kept a number of different wrasses from that genus in my coral holding systems and as they get larger they , more often 'n not, present a threat to any small crustaceans present. When they get large I move 'em out and sell them and replace them with smaller ones as I use them as biological controls along with other fish. I've seen 'em eat small hermits and go after small crabs and shrimp that are sometimes found living amongst certain corals. I've also seen 'em devastate small glass shrimp and small serpent stars. I only choose the smaller ones for such duty and while I've never used H. iridis (those are too desirable as aquarium specimens to use for that kinda grunt work in my systems) I have used H. melanurus on a few occasions with similar results. That yours have been model denizens is of no surprise to me. Very few things ,when it comes to livestock, can be spoken about in absolutes.

 

[bigdee65]

Just took a pic of my Potters Wrasse last night and thought I would share

 

[crumbletop]

Nice!