Leopard wrasse

[sunoka]

I am heading to a LFS well kinda locale 3 hours away...they have a wrasse that has been in hiding since it went into there tank a week ago now I really wan this fish so how much risk is there digging it out of the sand. to relocate to my tank. :question:.

[BlueTang<3]

If it is hiding I would pass on it, you wont have a chance to see it eat. Leopard wrasses are hard enough to keep as it is when they are eating and bolder. This one would go into your tank and would dive into the sand and probably never see it again.

[ScubaSteve]

And digging a leopard wrasse out of tue sand makes them freak the hell out. Unless you see a leopard out bombing around, I'd pass. If if find one that eats at the store, get it ASAP. Wait another week and see if it comes out of the sand.

[toytech]

If its not out by now it probably wont ever come out , or wont eat if it does . I looked at a couple ornates and got the piggyest one they had . She now eats everything and has never hidden.

[slakker]

I would avoid it as well... I had a leopard for years before it finally went to the big aquarium in the sky. The thing with leopards is that when spooked they want to burrow. So in transport, they sometimes keep hiring the bottom of the box/enclosure and damage their beak, which makes it hard for them to feed after. You want to get one that's already acclimated and known to be feeding.

When I got mine, he disappeared for 5 days, but he was a healthy feeding specimen from the lfs, so when he came out, he was hungry and ready to feed.

He went to sleep every night an I could see him from under the tank. Very cool.

[sunoka]

Thanx for the in put I just needed a little more convincing that it was a bad idea. I already have a leopard wrasse and have had for over 3 years and still growing........I went to the LFS that had the fish and as soon as I walked into the store I knew I wasn`t buying anything. So off I went to another store and score a sweet 1.5" long juv red corris wrasse to add to my wife`s 25gal to clean up the brisstal worms and then I will move it into the big tank once it grows abit because the teen-ages in the big tank will be dicks because it is so small.

[Proteus]

I bought one last year. Nice fish. Only seen it twice. When it did come out my lineatus would pick on it and it would hide again. Even though fairy wrasses are peaceful for the most part I probably not consider it unless it was going into a new tank without any dominate fish of similar species.