Regal Angel Hiding All Day

roberthu526

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So I finally pulled the trigger and bough a regal angel. It was shipped out last Thursday from NYAquatics because I have heard a lot of good things about it. They don't ship regal angels out if the fish wasn't eating already. The package arrived Friday noon and I floated the bag for about 30 minutes then released the fish directly into the tank. The fish is about 4 inches and a red belly as stated on NYAquatics.

The tank water is at 1.016 because Michael at NYAquatics told me he kept the water at 1.018. The consensus is lower salinity makes the fish breath easier. The tank is a 125G with live rock. The tank has been cycled for over two months and I had multiple fish in there including four tangs. In order to accommodate the regal angel I sold all my fish locally except a 1.5 inch Labout's Fairy wrasse who is very active and friendly. The only other tank mate is a 1.5 inch gold flake angel I added the day after the regal was added. The gold flake is also very active and friendly. Those two little guys hang out and swim around all the time. They both eat pretty well and looks to be very happy. It actually only took two days for the gold flake to associate me with food and starts to swim towards whenever I approach the tank which is super awesome.

However the regal angel is a totally different story. It has been hiding since the moment it was released into the tank. It hides behind the rocks almost 24/7 even when there is no people in the room. I intentionally setup the tank in my home office because it is the quietest place in the entire house. The room is literally empty for 22 hours a day. Only I go in there to feed the fish and check out the tank. Occasionally work for an hour or so in the night but that is it. I have two cameras setup to monitor the tank so I can checkout the situation when I am at work. But every time I look I only see the two little fishes cruising around, never the regal.

So far I have tried fresh clam, mussel, oyster, Hikari Mysis, Cobalt Mysis, LRS Reef Frenzy, Hikari Marine Angel Formula, San Francisco Bay Frozen Brine Shrimp but nothing gets the regal's interest. The main problem is the regal doesn't even come out. I tried to leave the food close to where he hides but he hasn't touched anything yet. I have emailed Michael asking what he fed this fish in his facility but have not heard back yet. So now I am not sure what to try. I kind have exhausted my resources. If anyone could chime in I'd really appreciate it. I have attached photos of the tank and the setup for reference.
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Regals are generally shy and take some time to acclimate to their new environment. Did Michael send you a video of the fish eating prior to shipping?
 
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roberthu526

roberthu526

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Regals are generally shy and take some time to acclimate to their new environment. Did Michael send you a video of the fish eating prior to shipping?

No he didn’t. I just took his word for it because of the good reviews I have read on the forums.
 

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Agreed that regals can be pretty shy, especially after being moved. This behavior is pretty normal. Keep making clams available, but take them out after 4 hrs so the water doesn't foul.
 

alton

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First of all if he is fat you are in pretty good shape. I have had adult regals take 3 to 4 weeks before eating in my 100 gallon rubbermaid tub with liverock that I use for QT. Regals love swimming in and out of liverock for protection, they are not normally open water swimmers like most other angels. From what I can tell your liverock setup doesn't look full? I did find one that was happy no matter where he ended up at, but that was one out of ten maybe when I was trying to create pairs. (a very expensive endeavor when I had my 300) Hopefully yours opens up or add cured liverock to your tank creating tunnels and cracks for him to swim around in to feel protected. They following is what my guys get to enjoy everyday
180 - 10-30-17.jpg
 

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As @alton mentioned you may want to have more caves for the Regal to feel safe in. Possibly cover one end of the tank for a bit, to shade that end of the tank for refuge. It may take a while for him to eat, just don't overfeed and foul the water. Best of luck.
 

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If your regal looks healthy, I wouldn't really worry about it. I currently have 2 regals and had multiple in the past. I've never lost one due to starvation. From my experience, they starting eating around 5 to 10 days mark. I generally let the fish hide and don't even bother feeding him for 5 days or so. I got all my regals to eat mysis shrimp and didn't had to try any other food such as live food. If your fish is fat and healthy looking then he will eventually eat. Just give him some time.
 
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roberthu526

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Agreed that regals can be pretty shy, especially after being moved. This behavior is pretty normal. Keep making clams available, but take them out after 4 hrs so the water doesn't foul.

Thanks. I will keep clams and oysters then. Fingers crossed.
 
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roberthu526

roberthu526

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First of all if he is fat you are in pretty good shape. I have had adult regals take 3 to 4 weeks before eating in my 100 gallon rubbermaid tub with liverock that I use for QT. Regals love swimming in and out of liverock for protection, they are not normally open water swimmers like most other angels. From what I can tell your liverock setup doesn't look full? I did find one that was happy no matter where he ended up at, but that was one out of ten maybe when I was trying to create pairs. (a very expensive endeavor when I had my 300) Hopefully yours opens up or add cured liverock to your tank creating tunnels and cracks for him to swim around in to feel protected. They following is what my guys get to enjoy everyday
180 - 10-30-17.jpg

WOW your tank is awesome! No problems keeping two angels with the softies and LPS?
My Regal does look in good shape but the hiding makes me worry. I will add more live rock this weekend. The fish is observing the environment for sure. I can see him poking out and see if there is anyone in the room. He doesn’t seem freaked out at all. Only swims slowing. The little gold flake on the other hand is eating great. I can already see him round up.
 
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roberthu526

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As @alton mentioned you may want to have more caves for the Regal to feel safe in. Possibly cover one end of the tank for a bit, to shade that end of the tank for refuge. It may take a while for him to eat, just don't overfeed and foul the water. Best of luck.

Thank you. That’s what I am going to do this weekend.
 
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roberthu526

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If your regal looks healthy, I wouldn't really worry about it. I currently have 2 regals and had multiple in the past. I've never lost one due to starvation. From my experience, they starting eating around 5 to 10 days mark. I generally let the fish hide and don't even bother feeding him for 5 days or so. I got all my regals to eat mysis shrimp and didn't had to try any other food such as live food. If your fish is fat and healthy looking then he will eventually eat. Just give him some time.

That’s good to know. Thank you for sharing. I tried Easyreef masstick food today with no luck. I stick the food paste on half oyster shell but he didn’t touch it. The gold flake angel had a full belly though. Today marks one week since he was shipped out. Hopefully he starts eating this weekend.
 
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roberthu526

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How's the Regal doing?

Thank you for asking. He still hasn’t eaten anything yet. Still hiding all day long. I dosed Prazipro just to make sure it wasn’t fluke that caused the hiding. No change so far. I am not holding my hopes at this point although the fish seems to be healthy. The hiding is what really gets me baffled. I have never seen a healthy fish hiding even when no body is in the room. I have ordered some live sponge online but I don’t think it’s going to make any difference because the fish rarely comes out of the rocks.

Anyway, I just ordered a juvenile Regal angel from LA hoping for a better luck. I really think the Regal I currently have is too big to adjust to a tank environment.
 
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roberthu526

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I turned off the gyres today and left the return pump on. The Regal seems more active. I was able to seem him on the web cam I setup monitoring the side of the tank. Here is a short video I captured . He is now hanging out on the side of the tank all the time. I will move the clams and oysters to where he is tomorrow and see if he starts eating.
 
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roberthu526

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Throw a collared green in there on a clip. Mine absolutely destroys it.

Thank you for the advice. But the Regal died last night. I found him laying on the bottom this morning. Never ate anything in the 10 days he was with me. From now on I am never going to buy from vendors that don’t offer 2-week guarantee. No matter what they claim. This has been a horrible experience. Thank you all for the support though.
 

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Thank you for the advice. But the Regal died last night. I found him laying on the bottom this morning. Never ate anything in the 10 days he was with me. From now on I am never going to buy from vendors that don’t offer 2-week guarantee. No matter what they claim. This has been a horrible experience. Thank you all for the support though.
Sorry to hear this. Better luck with the one from LA.
 

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Thank you for the advice. But the Regal died last night. I found him laying on the bottom this morning. Never ate anything in the 10 days he was with me. From now on I am never going to buy from vendors that don’t offer 2-week guarantee. No matter what they claim. This has been a horrible experience. Thank you all for the support though.

Sorry to hear about this. I almost bought one from NYA as well, but he never sent me a video of the regals eating like he said he would, so I bought one from saltwaterfish.com, which was cheaper and provided a 15-day guarantee. Mine ate evertything including pellets from Day 1.
 

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Sorry to hear about this. I almost bought one from NYA as well, but he never sent me a video of the regals eating like he said he would, so I bought one from saltwaterfish.com, which was cheaper and provided a 15-day guarantee. Mine ate evertything including pellets from Day 1.
You made the right choice.
 

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