Hiding Trigger

[Ex-Reefer]

I have a Niger Trigger that has been in my tank for about 4 years now. The fish has always been very bold and always out in the open. Recently for the past 2-3 days the fish has been hiding in his sleep hole located in a very large piece of rock. With the use of a flashlight, I can see the fish and he appears healthy with no physical signs of distress. Any ideas why this is happening?

The only thing that has changed was the addition of a panther grouper which has completely ignored everything in the tank since its introduction. Any help would be greatly appreaciated, I really dont want to lose this fish.

[LionfishFinatic]

any new inhabitants that might be bullying him?? only thing I can think of now.... any possibly bullies in the tank at all??

[jda]

Check you water parameters and post with numbers. Also check for stray current.

Is it eating?

If the numbers are fine and no stray current, then it might just need some time to get used to the panther. 2-3 days isn't that big of a deal. If it goes on for weeks, then I would worry.

[snapper1]

A Bully

[Ex-Reefer]

Thank you for all of the responses. I had some time today to actually sit and watch the tank for a couple of minutes and the trigger was beginning to come out of the hole and swim around.

The panther grouper along with all of the other fish all seem to leave each other alone with no problems. None of the fish show any physical signs of harrassment from other fish.

I have a ground probe in the tank with minimal equipment on the tank so i dont think that there is a stray current problem, however I have no way to test it to confirm that.

The only thing i can come up with is that the trigger is only about 2.5 inches in a tank with much larger fish. The trigger has been in the tank for the longest time (4 years) and has grown very little in that time period. Perhaps his boldness in the tank is being affected by his smaller size and lack of confidence around the other fish?

http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o199/Ex-Reefer/90Gallon.jpg

[tb27272]

I am surprised no one has said anything about having triggers, tangs and a panther grouper in a 90 gallon tank.

[johno4]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10369896#post10369896 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by tb27272
I am surprised no one has said anything about having triggers, tangs and a panther grouper in a 90 gallon tank.

I think the size of a fish determines whether or not a tank is too small. When these fish get bigger, I agree a larger tank is needed but they look fine for now.

Ex-Reefer, how long have you had the unicorn tang and how long did it take before he started to grow his horn? I have a small (3in) unicorn tang and was just wondering when I will start to see growth of his horn.

[snapper1]

when they double there size then it can be a problem nice Tank looks great.