cleaner wrasse vs jawfish

jeth1979 · 02-21-2009, 01:53 PM

hi all, firstly just like to say that i hope i have this in the right catergory,as it does regard my fish.

i thought i would share this little problem/ dilema out with you all. heres the scene. i have a 3ft tank,mh,2 skimmers 2 external filters etc. i have 3 blue damsels,2 clown fish, 1 regal tang,1 cleaner wrasse,2 jawfish...1 big brittle star 6-7",4 hermits,lots of coral.
my problem/issue has been this.

2 weeks ago i bought 2 yellow headed jawfish from my lfs. after just 2 days, i found one of the jawfish in a very bad way. i took him back to the lfs, who informed me that he was "beaten to a pulp by another fish" sadly it died that day. we both assumed it was the other jawfish, possibly because of territory. that same day, i fed the fish in the evening and witnessed something rather nasty. my cleaner wrasse was "seeing off/attacking" the 2nd jawfish. as i started watching it(observing over the next couple of days),it was more and more apparent that the cleaner wrasse had it in for the 2nd jawfish, as every time he emerged from his burrow the wrasse would "fly" over the top of him,sometimes darting at him and literally biting him, forcing him to retreat back in!!!! i have just today taken the wrasse back to my lfs as i noticed a few marks/nipping on my jawfish this morning.(who was unusally shy/hiding most of the day).

my question is this,with the information i have supplied is my tank over stocked,did i just have a aggressive cleaner wrasse, or do you think i could be something else attacking the jawfish,maybe the brittle star??? also is this sort of thing a common occurance or a rare one?? i only ask as im sure the guy at the fish shop didn"t believe me when i explained what was goimg on!!!!!
thanks for any help, very much appreciated

vanpyre · 02-21-2009, 02:24 PM

i would not say brittle star, and cleaner wrasses have a powerfull jaw, so i'd say its quite possible, now you have taken him out, you'll see if it was him because the jawfish will come back out

jeth1979 · 02-21-2009, 03:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vanpyre

i would not say brittle star, and cleaner wrasses have a powerfull jaw, so i'd say its quite possible, now you have taken him out, you'll see if it was him because the jawfish will come back out

yes indeed, got to confess that in the last couple of hours he has started to hover above his burrow,instead of hiding in it. who would of thought it though, a cleaner wrasse with attitude!!!lol

vanpyre · 02-21-2009, 03:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeth1979

yes indeed, got to confess that in the last couple of hours he has started to hover above his burrow,instead of hiding in it. who would of thought it though, a cleaner wrasse with attitude!!!lol

i had a boxer, he was taking fish out ten times his size

vanpyre · 02-21-2009, 03:16 PM

i think though you are about at your limit on the fish side of things

LCP136 · 02-21-2009, 05:50 PM

Your overstocked IMO. In a 3 foot tank, I would think that just the 3 damsels, 2 clowns, and jawfish would be enough. However, having the regal tang puts it over the top. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but a 3 foot tank is too small for any but very small regal tangs. You will need to upgrade or find it a new home. The fact that you are running two skimmers makes reduces the stress on the system somewhat. The cleaner wrasse could be the culprit, but clownfish and damsels are also/can also be very aggressive. However, if the goby is coming back out w/ the CW gone, than that would be your culprit. The brittle definitely isn't at fault because if he were to attack someone it would be in the form of trapping and eating, bot beating up.

02-21-2009, 01:53 PM	#1
jeth1979 Flamingo Tongue Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: guildford ,surrey,se uk Age: 33 Posts: 110 Skin: Mint Karma: 372	cleaner wrasse vs jawfish hi all, firstly just like to say that i hope i have this in the right catergory,as it does regard my fish. i thought i would share this little problem/ dilema out with you all. heres the scene. i have a 3ft tank,mh,2 skimmers 2 external filters etc. i have 3 blue damsels,2 clown fish, 1 regal tang,1 cleaner wrasse,2 jawfish...1 big brittle star 6-7",4 hermits,lots of coral. my problem/issue has been this. 2 weeks ago i bought 2 yellow headed jawfish from my lfs. after just 2 days, i found one of the jawfish in a very bad way. i took him back to the lfs, who informed me that he was "beaten to a pulp by another fish" sadly it died that day. we both assumed it was the other jawfish, possibly because of territory. that same day, i fed the fish in the evening and witnessed something rather nasty. my cleaner wrasse was "seeing off/attacking" the 2nd jawfish. as i started watching it(observing over the next couple of days),it was more and more apparent that the cleaner wrasse had it in for the 2nd jawfish, as every time he emerged from his burrow the wrasse would "fly" over the top of him,sometimes darting at him and literally biting him, forcing him to retreat back in!!!! i have just today taken the wrasse back to my lfs as i noticed a few marks/nipping on my jawfish this morning.(who was unusally shy/hiding most of the day). my question is this,with the information i have supplied is my tank over stocked,did i just have a aggressive cleaner wrasse, or do you think i could be something else attacking the jawfish,maybe the brittle star??? also is this sort of thing a common occurance or a rare one?? i only ask as im sure the guy at the fish shop didn"t believe me when i explained what was goimg on!!!!! thanks for any help, very much appreciated

02-21-2009, 02:24 PM	#2
vanpyre Flamingo Tongue Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: midlands england Age: 32 Posts: 124 Skin: Mint Karma: 67	i would not say brittle star, and cleaner wrasses have a powerfull jaw, so i'd say its quite possible, now you have taken him out, you'll see if it was him because the jawfish will come back out

02-21-2009, 03:16 PM	#5
vanpyre Flamingo Tongue Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: midlands england Age: 32 Posts: 124 Skin: Mint Karma: 67	i think though you are about at your limit on the fish side of things

02-21-2009, 05:50 PM	#6
LCP136 Sailfin Tang Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 1,722 Skin: Mint Karma: 12891	Your overstocked IMO. In a 3 foot tank, I would think that just the 3 damsels, 2 clowns, and jawfish would be enough. However, having the regal tang puts it over the top. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but a 3 foot tank is too small for any but very small regal tangs. You will need to upgrade or find it a new home. The fact that you are running two skimmers makes reduces the stress on the system somewhat. The cleaner wrasse could be the culprit, but clownfish and damsels are also/can also be very aggressive. However, if the goby is coming back out w/ the CW gone, than that would be your culprit. The brittle definitely isn't at fault because if he were to attack someone it would be in the form of trapping and eating, bot beating up.