LT Anthias Changing

[Salty0331]

I have been reefing a long time, but just recently (a month ago) just started keeping LT Anthias. I took two females from a friend who had them. I have no male and one of the females has retreated to the shadows. Respiration is slightly elevated, no external signs of trauma or parasitic infection. She eats but then retreats until the next feeding. No one in the tank seems to bother with her either at any point during the day including feeding.

I was wondering if anyone with more experience with this species have witnessed one of their females transform to a male in the absence of the other sex. Curious if that is what may be going on. Kinda like when my fire shrimp retreats after molting.

 

[eatbreakfast]

No, when transitioning without a male, the anthias will be bold, behaving as if it already were a male.

 

[jlanger]

I've had two female Lyretail Anthias transition to male in my tanks.
And they do become more bold; not timid. Your retreating fish may be doing so because it is being bullied too much by the other fish. I've always tried to keep at least three anthias in the group as this will deflect the male's aggression to more than just one female.

Keep an eye on both fish. You'll notice slight color changes on the transitioning fish; spots on the fins appear first.