Yellow Coris Wrasse...is this normal

Webslinger · Mar 8, 2020

Is this wrasse’s mouth normal. I’ve had this wrasse 4 years since it’s been about an inch long. He seems to be developing an overbite. Is this normal? Or did he injure himself one of the many times he got spooked then jumped an hit the canopy or is it something else. (His lower jaw is much shorter than his upper jaw)

Yy

mort · Mar 9, 2020

Going by the picture it does look like an injury albeit one that probably wont affect the fish much. As they age and mature the mouth shape does begin to look blunt but I'm not sure if this is a physical change to the mouth or simply because the put on mass around the head and chin.

@evolved and @eatbreakfast can hopefully advise if I'm wrong.

OrionN · Mar 9, 2020

It is mouth injury. Looks like he is missing the front part of his lower jaw. Hopefully this does not affect his ability to eat.
I had a China wrasse with similar injury, but in my fish's case, as it heal , the skin, or part of the lower jaw, grow back but the bone did not. This result in her not able to open her mouth very much. Over a year time she slowly starved to death because she was unable to to take much of a bite. Can only eat very small bits of food. I was hard for me to see her getting thinner and thinner even as other fish getting fat.

Webslinger · Mar 9, 2020

Thanks, He has no trouble eating and I started to notice it a few years ago as he matured but now it is really pronounced. Just wasn't sure it was a age thing or not. He has become beautiful fish, pictures don't do his coloration justice.

evolved · Mar 9, 2020

I don't have much else to add here. Definitely not normal, and it looks like an old injury - so long as it doesn't inhibit his ability to eat, it should be okay.