Wrasse Introduction

Hello Everyone,

I just purchased a Tri Color Fairy Wrasse from my LFS. They have had him/her in a seperate tank (upon my request) for the last 2 weeks. The fish eats all types of frozen food and has been in QT for the time in isolation.

I brought the fish home and acclimated it to my tank and turned off all lights for 2 hours upon introduction. While the lights were out I could see him swimming about and checking out his new surroundings. As soon as I turned on the lights for feeding I have yet to find the fish again.

Is it normal for Fairy Wrasses to be timid upon introduction to a new tank? How long should I wait for the fish to not show itself in my tank before I start to worry?

I thank you in advance and have listed below my stock list for the tank, even though there should be minimal aggression in the tank.

120 Gallon tank w/40 Breeder sump. Vertex Alpha 170 skimmer, 2 media reactors (one carbon, one Bellaphos) and a fuge with macro algae.

1 Hippo Tang
1 Diamond Goby
1 Target Mandarin
1 Cleaner Wrasse
2 Oscellaris Clowns
3 Lyretail Anthias
4 Bartlett Anthias

I will also be adding an Australian Scotts Fairy Wrasse on Friday.

 

Wrasses, along with a lot of other fish, are extremely shy when first introduced into a new tank. I wouldn't worry at all as long as you do see him on occasion, even if it's with the lights off. He'll come around in his own time.

 

It's pretty normal for a wrasse to be a bit shy for the first few days, up to a week. However, it's also possible someone is bullying him into hiding; any of the anthias are suspects. Give things a few days to settle in and you'll likely gradually see him more.

Do be very careful and observant with adding that Scott's. Typically they do not accept other wrasses or similar fish, and will be very aggressive towards them. I've made it work before, but this isn't something I'd recommend to a wrasse novice.