Wrasse trouble

[GJak]

Newish tank, 3 months old, reefer 170. Everything has been going fine. Refugium is up and running, pumping out masses of red oggo and a sustainable population of pods. Phosphate, nitrate, alk, mag, salinity, pH, ammonia, all within acceptable levels.

Have two davinci clowns, a Randall's goby, green Mandarin, purple firefish, African flame angel, tiger conch, tuxedo urchin, and a tricolor fairy wrasse. Multiple zoanthids, two ricordea, a green branching hammer and a favia.

Everything has been flourishing both fish and coral wise, except for the wrasse. This guy (who replaced a mccoskers) is routinely laying on it's side, sucking air at the top of the tank, or just exhibiting bizarre behavior. The exact same thing the mccoskers did before it died a week after it was added to the tank.

Does anyone have any idea why everything else could be doing swimmingly but both wrasses seem to be struggling? Anyone have anything similar happen?

(Wanted to add)

The only thing I've noticed is that the flame angel has bothered both wrasses, especially after the lights go out. Did not let either one settle in to the rockscape at night and both wrasses are / were forced to sleep on the open sand because of it. The angel doesn't take notice of the other fish at all but has feuded with both the mccoskers and now the tri color fairy.

 

[Big G]

Welcome to R2R
Have you done a freshwater dip on the wrasse? Wrasses are fluke magnets.

 

[GJak]

Welcome to R2R
Have you done a freshwater dip on the wrasse? Wrasses are fluke magnets.

I have read about it but I have not. Can you elaborate on the best way to go about it? Just fresh ro temperature matched to the tank for a few minutes or should I add a bacterial treatment while doing it?

 

[Big G]

Yes. Temp and ph match for a max of 5 mins. Nothing else added just RODI.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/video-how-to-do-a-freshwater-dip.286639/#post-3487082

 

[GJak]

Yes. Temp and ph match for a max of 5 mins. Nothing else added just RODI.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/video-how-to-do-a-freshwater-dip.286639/#post-3487082

Ok lights are off so he is semi tucked into a rock. If he makes it until the morning I will see if I can net him out for a dip tomorrow. What is the best way to try to match the PH in the tank with the rodi?

 

[Big G]

Usually RODI is good to go. Always good to check. Here's Humblefish's how to dip:

Freshwater Dip: Provides temporary relief for Brooklynella, Flukes & "Black Ich", Marine Velvet disease (Amyloodinium); possibly even Ich & Uronema marinum (both unproven). Can be used to confirm the presence of Flukes.

How To Treat - Fill a bucket with RODI water, and use a heater to match the temperature to the water the fish is coming from. Aerate the water heavily for at least 30 minutes prior to doing the dip, then discontinue aeration while performing the dip. Fish aren’t overly pH sensitive for short durations like this, but you can squirt a little tank water into the dip just before the fish goes in to help bring it up.

Place the fish in the freshwater (FW) dip and observe closely. It is not unusual for them to freak out a little at first. Also, tangs are notorious for “playing dead” during a FW dip. The important thing is to watch their gills; they should be breathing heavily at all times during the dip. If breathing slows, it’s time to exit the dip. Dip the fish for no longer than 5 minutes. Multiple dips may be done, but it’s important to give your fish a day to recuperate in-between dips.

For flukes, use a dark (preferably black) bucket so you can see if tiny white worms fall out of the fish (especially out of the gills) at around the 3-4 minute mark. The worms will settle to the bottom, so you can use a flashlight to look for them there as well.

 

[Frtdrmrose7]

Ok lights are off so he is semi tucked into a rock. If he makes it until the morning I will see if I can net him out for a dip tomorrow. What is the best way to try to match the PH in the tank with the rodi?

RODI should be ok but if you need to boost PH just add a squirt of tank water

 

[GJak]

Thanks for the replies, will attempt it tomorrow.

 

[ngoodermuth]

Welcome to R2R!

The other things wrasses are notorious for (though I agree symptom you describe of gulping air at the surface is more indicative of flukes, but just as an added note) are intestinal parasites. So, keep an eye out for white-stringy poop.

Or, if you’d like to be proactive you can feed food soaked in general cure/focus for 10 days.

 

[GJak]

Welcome to R2R!

The other things wrasses are notorious for (though I agree symptom you describe of gulping air at the surface is more indicative of flukes, but just as an added note) are intestinal parasites. So, keep an eye out for white-stringy poop.

Or, if you’d like to be proactive you can feed food soaked in general cure/focus for 10 days.

Woke up yesterday morning and the wrasse had fanned out a sleeping spot for himself on the outside of the rock structure where the angel no longer bothers him. He seems to be back to a normal swimming pattern. Decided to hold off on the dip until I see anything else unusual from him. Don't want to cause him any unnecessary stress for now.