Yellow Tail Tamarin Wrasse - Anampses meleagrides

Yellow Tail Tamarin Wrasse (Anampses meleagrides)

The Yellow Tail Tamarin Wrasse is a beautiful but specialist marine wrasse, recognised by its dark body covered in pale spotting and its striking bright yellow tail. In the wild it occurs on seaward reefs in areas of mixed coral, rubble, limestone and sand, and like other tamarin wrasses it is active, shy at first and delicate during acclimation. Because it can be difficult to establish in captivity, it is best suited to a mature, peaceful marine aquarium run by an experienced aquarist.

Common Name:
Yellow Tail Tamarin Wrasse. It is also commonly known as the Yellowtail Wrasse or Spotted Wrasse.

Scientific Name (Latin):
Anampses meleagrides

Maximum Size:
Up to 22 cm in length, although aquarium specimens are often smaller than the largest wild fish.

Water Type:
Marine.

Origin / Natural Habitat:
Found across the Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea and East Africa to Samoa and the Tuamotu Islands, north to southern Japan. Adults are found on seaward reefs over mixed coral, rubble, consolidated limestone and sand, and may also occur around soft coral or sponge habitats.

Water Parameters:
Temperature: 22–26°C
pH Range: 8.1–8.4
Salinity: 1.020–1.025 SG

Temperament:
Generally peaceful to timid, though it may become aggressive towards similar wrasses or fish of the same sex. It does best with other calm tankmates rather than boisterous or highly competitive species.

Diet:
Carnivorous. It naturally feeds on very small invertebrates associated with live rock and reef surfaces. In captivity it should be offered a varied diet of small meaty marine foods such as mysis, enriched brineshrimp and other finely sized crustacean-based foods, and newly imported specimens may need live foods to encourage feeding.

Minimum Tank Size:
At least 450 litres is the safer long-term recommendation. Some hobby references quote smaller tanks, but larger, mature systems are more appropriate for this species given its delicacy and feeding needs.

Behaviour & Activity:
An active wrasse that spends much of the day foraging through the aquarium. It is a sand-burying species, using the substrate to sleep or to hide when frightened, so it benefits from open swimming space as well as secure rockwork and a suitable sandy area.

Reef Safe:
Reef Safe
Available aquarium references generally regard this species as suitable for reef aquaria and do not indicate a tendency to damage corals or ornamental invertebrates.

Special Requirements or Care Notes:
This species does best in a well-established marine aquarium with plenty of rockwork, caves and crevices, a thick sandy substrate for burying, and a tight-fitting lid because it may jump. One of the main challenges is that it may not feed readily when first acclimating, so careful observation and targeted feeding are very important.

Suitable for:
Experienced fishkeepers
This is consistently described as a fish needing experience, preparation and extra care, and some aquarium references classify it as expert only because of its feeding behaviour and difficulty settling in.

Availability:
Occasional in trade. It does appear through specialist marine retailers, but it is not one of the more commonly encountered everyday wrasses.

All images are a visual representation of the fish you will receive, made to be as accurate as possible. Please note that Mother Nature is a wonderful thing, and variation in patterns and colours will occur — that is part of the unique beauty of these animals.