- Tuskfish Tusks 7/7/06 -
Hello my name is Adrian and I have been reading up on your articles  for some time now and they are very educating, thank you for your service to  this wonderful hobby . I have had a Aussie Harlequin tusk for just about a year  now and it is rather large 7 inches head to fin. I was wondering about his tusk?? <???> when will they decide to grow out? <Soon enough - these fish aren't quick growers and the tusks are even slower to show up in developing fish.> is there anything i can do to help him grow them? <Not really.> I also have a question on feeding. I usually feed him krill or large bait shrimp bought at the local fishing store.. i figure it to be a little cheaper and funner for him to eat. he also eats a lot of green algae when the tangs eat. so far he is healthy and has beautiful coloration but wanted to know what else he might like to eat or might help him grow his teeth? <Not really - this diet sounds quite adequate.> well thank you  for your time and continue the great work on your site. Thanks again
Adrian
<Cheers, J -- >

Re: Harlequin Tusk, fdg.  6/25/06 -
Hi Crew
<Hello Wayne>
Just a quick question for you on my beautiful new 5" Harlequin Tusk!  I just can't find an answer to my question on WWM or the web in general.
As I wrote below, I am feeding my HT twice a day.  I feed raw frozen foods, shrimp and scallops mostly.
I feed him with a feeding stick.  How big should the pieces be?
<Bite size.>
Currently I feed him 2 pea sized chunks everyday.  1 in the morning and 1 in the late afternoon.
Can I feed him 1 large piece everyday, instead of doing it twice?
<If you agree to eat once a day, should be fine.  Otherwise, two or three small feedings per day are much better.>
Thanks a ton!
<You're welcome.  James (Salty Dog)>
Wayne

Harlequin Tuskfish/Feeding/Compatibility  6/5/06
Hello Crew!
<Hello Wayne>
Thanks for the great site!  I don't know what I'd do without you folks!
<You're welcome>
I have a few feeding questions.
I am currently feeding my Volitans Lion (8 in), and my snowflake eel (10 in), raw/thawed shrimp, scallops, and occasional flounder.  They are soaked in Kent Zoe for 1.5 hrs prior to being frozen.
I feed them both every other day.  We've had the Lion for about 8 months now.  He's grown about 10% (maybe an inch) during that time.
My questions:
Is this growth rate normal?  
<Hard to say, much depends on nutrition, water quality, tank size, etc> (we're hoping he'd grow faster)
Is it ok to feed him daily, instead of every other day?
<I think every other day is a little much for the lionfish.  Twice weekly would suffice.>
and will he grow faster if we feed him daily?
<More than likely, I do, but I'm not getting any taller, just wider.>
I have a Harlequin Tuskfish on the way.
I plan to feed him the same foods as the Eel and Lionfish.
<Would be fine.>
I plan to feed him 2 times per day.
Does this  sound ok?  Is there anything else I should be feeding the Tuskfish?
<What you mentioned is fine.  Keep in mind, the Tuskfish will eat any small crustaceans present in your tank.  They use those tusks very efficiently.  Do search for info on the Wet Web  before writing.  The information you requested is easily found on our site.>
Thanks for everything!  You guys/gals are great!
<You're welcome, again.  James (Salty Dog)>
Wayne

Re: Tuskfish
<<Greetings, JasonC here...>>
I recently purchased a harlequin tusk and was just wondering is it possible for their teeth to break on mussel shells and if so will the teeth grow back. <<Yes, they can and do break their teeth, and yes... providing no damage to the underlying jaw structure, the teeth do grow back.>> This is a very predominant feature with this fish and would be a great disappointment if the teeth did not grow. <<It would be, but surely it is not the only feature of these magnificent fish. Mine has only three tusks after smashing its face in during quarantine. It's still a handsome fish. Cheers, J -- >>

- Harlequin Tusk Food Preferences -
One more thing. . . I just read that they need live crustaceans for survival.  Is this true? <I hope not, otherwise mine is doomed.>  
I really hesitate feeding anything live due to diseases. What are your thoughts? <There are other good reasons to not feed live foods, but most importantly in this case, you just don't need to. Tuskfish will greedily accept just about any meaty seafood - squid, clams, shrimp, crabs, Mysis shrimp, fish... all are fair game and really what you should be feeding these fish. Skip the brine shrimp. No worries.>
Thanks.
<Cheers, J -- >

- Tusk Issues -
Hey there again, <Hey.>
I have a question about a harlequin tusk. I've had it about three weeks and I still haven't viewed it eating. <These fish can go quite a while without eating.> I have all my water parameters up to par and all, plus I always have a mussel, clam or squid in there for it to eat. I also feed Mysis and brine to my other fish but he never seems interested. The tusk swims around a lot and doesn't seem stressed or ill, and it was at the LFS for a month and was eating supposedly squid.
Another part of my question I guess would be should I return it? <For the reasons you list? I wouldn't... the store will likely only give you half the original price, if that.> I'm having a slight ich problem, only one of my fish shows signs once in awhile, like two or three spots, but I'm about to treat with hyposalinity anyway. <In my opinion, hyposalinity in an of itself will cure little to nothing - it needs to be part of a system of treatment, quarantine, copper, etc.> Also the tusk isn't from Australia, which I prefer to have. But I have noticed that one of guys who replies to emails says he has a tusk that isn't from Australia (Ian I believe). <Could also be me, I have a non-Australian tusk.> And I'm wondering why he opted to get a specimen that wasn't if they are supposed to have better coloration and be more hardier? <Not necessarily less hardy, certainly different colorations, but for me it had to do with size. I wanted a smaller tusk to start with [less than four inches] and Australian tusks rarely come in that size. Since that time, I've seen them at the wholesalers, but now that I have the fish, I'm going to keep it. For me they are pets, and I can't just ditch them when they lose their appeal or I see something I'd rather have.>
The reasons I would want to return the tusk is because 1.) he isn't eating 2.) I'm about to have to treat my fish anyway 3.) if the Australians are that much better, i guess the downside to this though would be about $30 extra and having to mail order it but all things considered what should i do? <I can't help you with this. I would keep the fish... you need to make your own decision.>
Thanks once again
Brandon
<Cheers, J -- >

- Harlequin Tusk Hunger Strike -
I have a 120 gallon tank with excellent filtration and with a banana wrasse, harlequin tusk, yellow tang, volitans lionfish, orange roughy, maroon clown, large spotted grouper. My fish seemed to be all happy together until I started to notice my banana wrasse chasing my tusk. I have had my harlequin tusk since October and he has been doing extremely well with all my fish but now for some reason he has completely stopped eating. 
I have tested my water and it test okay. I have tried to feed the tusk live food and it is not interested at all in anything. My banana wrasse just started to chase my tusk around recently but they seem to leave each other alone for the most part. What is wrong with my tusk? Why is it not eating? I don't understand, the fish does not show any apparent disease or infection. What should I do to get him to eat again.. Please respond soon. Thank you very much for your time.
<It's difficult to say exactly why your tusk has chosen to stop eating, but it is possible the aggression from the other wrasse has something to do with it. The item I've found that tusks find irresistible is whole shell fish - the most convenient is the TMC whole cockle, which are easily opened and dropped in the tank. 
The only problem is getting past the other fish and to the tusk directly - especially if the banana wrasse decides he doesn't want the tusk to have that food. Do keep in mind that a tusk fish in good health can go several weeks without eating so you've got some time to work this out. Short of removing this fish to a separate tank where it can keep to itself, you might want to try rearranging the rock work to break up territories. I wish I had a concrete answer for you but unless all the fish you list are all small, your fish are actually socially crowded and it's not easy for these problems to sort themselves out without the loss of a fish or two. On the reef, the tusk would simply swim far enough away to the point where the banana wrasse gives up chase - in your tank, this is not an option. Cheers, J -- >