Finally added first fish in tank....but where the heck is he??

[pammy]

Finally bought my first fish, and I was SO excited!! Bought a pygmy possum wrasse and he's SO cute. Very small little guy. Maybe 1" right now. I floated him in his bag in my tank for 30 minutes, then did a drip acclimation for an hour. Put him in the tank, and he immediately went under the rocks, and when I took a peak, he went further in and I couldn't see him any more. That was 24 hours ago.
I HOPE he's still just hiding, but I've searched every nook and cranny for him with a flashlight, and can't find him anywhere. No other fish in the tank, so nothing to tramatize him. I'm about to put some brine shrimp in the tank with garlic in hopes to lure him out of hiding, but I have a feeling that won't work. How do I know if he died, or if he's REALLY hiding? How long was the longest time you put a new fish in your tank and didn't see him again?

Parameters - Ammonia: 0, Nitrites:0, Nitrates:5 PH: 8.0 Salinity 1.026
Tank has been up and running for a month, and I put my first two corals in last week (Mushroom and Zooanthus). Corals are doing great and look beautiful.

Thanks.
Pam

[ObscurityKnocks]

I wouldn't get too worried yet. About half of the wrasses I've added to my tank dove for the rocks and didn't come out for a day or 2. And when they did start venturing out it was only for a couple of minutes and then back to the rocks.

One of them was hiding so well I assumed he was dead and 4 days later out he came. I'd give it 5 days or so before starting to worry. Every one of my wrasses was out of the rocks after 5 or 6 days.

[Bret61081]

I wouldnt worry...they are not the most social of fish. I'll go days without seeing mine....but it always comes out when i feed cyclopese...I wouldnt worry about it though. Just make sure you have plenty of pods for it to eat since it doesnt touch mysis or spectrum! CUTE little fish though! once it gets used to you and the aquarium it will come out more....expecially when the lights are dimmer...

[CarlC]

This fish is extremely shy even once settled in. It will never really leave the rocks except maybe at feeding time but even then it is quick to grab food and get back among the rock. Mine is housed with anthias.
Mine eats mysis, brine, shredded shrimp, shredded cockle just about anything meaty.

Carl

[pammy]

Well, 8 days later, and still not a single spotting of the possum wrasse. I went to my LFS with a sample of water yesterday and they tested it for everything and confirmed that all parameters are perfect. (at least I know my tests are accurate. Their tests said I had Ammonia:0 Nitrites: 0 Nitrates: 0 ( I was testing at what looked to be either 2.5 or 5) and PH: 8.3 They showed Salinity was 1.023, but I show it at 1.026. I calibrated my Refractometer with Pinpoint Calibration Fluid. Their Refractometer looked like it's not always rinsed...looked coroded...so I'll go by my reading.

They were great and replaced the possum wrasse with another and didn't charge me. If the first ever appears again, I'll be honest and bring him back to them. I was very happy that they took care of me, considering I spent a fortune purchasing the Elos System 80 from them, a couple corals, and some misc stuff. I know they didn't have to replace him, since I had no body to produce, and they only have a 48 hour stay alive guarantee (I did call them at 48 hours and told them that he had vanished). They had special ordered the possum wrasse for me, and bought 6 instead of just the one. They all sold except one, so I lucked out and got another. This new possum wrasse is already acting different. The first possum wrasse, disappeard immediately, never to be seen again. This one, hung out in the cave for a while, then swam into a hole and completely disappeared, then came back out and went back and forth into the hole a few times, and then disappeared for the rest of the night. Today, I had the lights out for several hours, and didn't see him at all, but within 30 minutes of the lights coming on, I saw him darting across the tank and then he disappeared again. At least I know he made it through the night. I have more hopes for him.

I also bought my second fish. Bought a purple firefish. I floated him for 30 minutes then acclimated him for an hour. I had a hard time getting him out of the bucket. He managed to squish himself against the side, so I couldn't get him wth the net. I then started pouring the water out slowly into my net to get him out that way, and he jumped several feet and landed on my rug. I quickly scooped him into my hand and into the tank. He immediately found a tiny hole in the rock that he liked at the bottom of the front of the rock and backed into it like he was backing into a garage, and was going back and forth in that one hole all night. I guess he's claimed his home!! He doesn't hide all the way though, his head and about 1/2" more sticks out. He came out several times to swim around a little.
This morning, he hid in his hole until the lights came on, and within a few minutes of the lights coming on, he has been swimming close to his hole. PHEW...looks like his little carpet surfing didn't cause any damage. Funny how he is staying RIGHT next to his little hole. So many holes in this rock, and he found one just barely big enough to back into . Haven't seen the possum wrasse since he took one quick swim across the tank, but I'm happy to know he made it through the night!!! So YAY....I have some life in my tank!!! Waiting for them to find me a Tail-Spot Blenny next, and after that, I'm not adding any more fish till I get back from vacation in August, and when I get back, I am going to add a pair of True Percula Clownfish. Have a leather coral in there now that's doing well, and that will give it time to grow, and if I'm REALLY lucky, maybe the clowns will host in it.

Bye
Pam

[mr. clown man]

yea my fire fish barely ever left his home, not even for food he would wait until it floated by his head then he would pop out of his home for 2 seconds n go back in