Yellowtail damsel.... eating coral?!?

[ocd_mariner]

As I write this, Im looking at my 1.5 inch yellowtail damsel, completely inverted (all I can see is his yellow tail sticking out) in my pink birdsnest nipping away at something.

Is he eating the coral? Some parasite? What the heck? I expect my emporer angel to take a nip here and there, but not the damsel. Any insight into this?

 

[coral_reefer_25]

Yellow-tail damsel = crack head fish

 

[DMBillies]

Ditto on Ryan's comment... don't know about coral eatin' but mine was a.... jerk

 

[pitbullpooch]

mine would do a quick peck at my corals but thats about it. i actually like them for some odd reason but i guess its there weird personality. Ive always had them in my reefs which are always nano's and never had a problem with them eating corals. but who knows some fish have a totally different atitude and taste then others.

 

[crumbletop]

If you need to get it out, try a trap like this. It worked great for me, and c_stowers just used it to great success as well:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=940129

If I can get it back from Chris, you could even borrow it if you want.

 

[ocd_mariner]

Thanks crumbletop, but I built one based off your thread a couple months ago Worked like a charm.

I just thought it was odd a damsel would pick at the coral. It doesn't really seem to be harming anything. Its a pretty laid back fish and easy on the eyes, so Im going to keep it in there for a bit and keep an eye on the birdsnest.

 

[crumbletop]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8989120#post8989120 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ocd_mariner
Thanks crumbletop, but I built one based off your thread a couple months ago Worked like a charm.

Sweet! I know of a few others who have used the trap to great success. Glad it worked for you too!