Banana Wrasse gone missing after adding to tank

[sassyonmane]

Added a banana wrasse to my tank and it sat on the bottom for a bit, then swam off when it got spooked by my copper band and now its completely missing, cant see it under any rock or coral.

 

[LiquidSpace]

It has likely buried itself under the sand and may be under there for days before you see it. One day you’re going to be watching the aquarium and realize it’s swimming around.

 

[bluemon]

Added a banana wrasse to my tank and it sat on the bottom for a bit, then swam off when it got spooked by my copper band and now its completely missing, cant see it under any rock or coral.

Wrasses like the banana wrasse sleep in the sand.

They also hide in the sand for extended periods of time when scared or introduced to new environments to adjust or to even fight jetlag

 

[sassyonmane]

Okay thank you, should i just leave the rockwork where it is? Im worried about it digging under then crushing itself.

 

[JumboShrimp]

The longest I ever had a Wrasse go missing was about 4 weeks. The one day I walked past my tank and surprise-- back swimming around like nothing had ever happened!

 

[sassyonmane]

okay thanks

 

[Slocke]

Uhh what do you mean by banana? The species usually called a banana is Thalassoma lutescens which is not a sand sleeper.

But did you maybe mean Halichoeres chrysus which is a sand sleeper?

 

[sassyonmane]

it had a body like the second but the head had slight faint patterns like the head of the first

 

[bluemon]

Okay thank you, should i just leave the rockwork where it is? Im worried about it digging under then crushing itself.

Disturbing the rock work will do more bad than good.

I’ve had one die after introduction though as the nearest point of entry had rock directly underneath so I think it got a bad concussion.

When it emerged out of the sand a few days after, didn’t make it. :(

 

[bluemon]

it had a body like the second but the head had slight faint patterns like the head of the first

It’s a banana wrasse.

They get that faint pattern when they mature

 

[sassyonmane]

It’s a banana wrasse.

They get that faint pattern when they mature

So should mine be under the sandbed? or?..

 

[Slocke]

it had a body like the second but the head had slight faint patterns like the head of the firs

Halichoeres chrysus is what you probably have. Most commonly known as a canary or just yellow wrasse. It is a sand sleeper and may disappear for a while like others have said.

The other wrasse, Thalassoma lutescens or the banana wrasse is giant and aggressive. Hope you don't have that.

 

[bluemon]

So should mine be under the sandbed? or?..

Yup, probably hidden somewhere.

Try to avoid the urge to go looking. It’ll be stressed if you disturb the sand bed.

 

[sassyonmane]

Okay thanks guys

 

[sassyonmane]

Uhh what do you mean by banana? The species usually called a banana is Thalassoma lutescens which is not a sand sleeper.

But did you maybe mean Halichoeres chrysus which is a sand sleeper?

Hes no longer hiding.. unfortunately he looks like the second picture, the spot on the dorsal fin, altho his caudal (tail fin) is slightly pink/orange red starting from the body and fading towards the end of the tail and a patterned face

 

[bluemon]

Hes no longer hiding.. unfortunately he looks like the second picture, the spot on the dorsal fin, altho his caudal (tail fin) is slightly pink/orange red starting from the body and fading towards the end of the tail and a patterned face

You mean fortunately right?

Unless you wanted the first one, I guess?

 

[Slocke]

Hes no longer hiding.. unfortunately he looks like the second picture, the spot on the dorsal fin, altho his caudal (tail fin) is slightly pink/orange red starting from the body and fading towards the end of the tail and a patterned face

No no, second picture is the canary. Which is good! The smaller, peaceful one.

 

[sassyonmane]

You mean fortunately right?

Unless you wanted the first one, I guess?

Mb got confused

 

[Slocke]

Sorry
I switched their order on you. Wrasse can be confusing which is why we nerds use the scientific names. If its yellow it is almost certainly a canary.

The “banana”/ Thalassoma so the giant aggressive one is usually some mix of green and yellow rather then the solid yellow (save some light stripes around the mouth) that the Halichoeres/canary has.

 

[bluemon]

Sorry
I switched their order on you. Wrasse can be confusing which is why we nerds use the scientific names. If its yellow it is almost certainly a canary.

The “banana”/ Thalassoma so the giant aggressive one is usually some mix of green and yellow rather then the solid yellow (save some light stripes around the mouth) that the Halichoeres/canary has.

Yea the yellow wrasse is the worst of the bunch.

Getting confused with not just the banana wrasse but Coris wrasses as well.

And it’s probably the most popular wrasse as well