Listless Royal Gramma

[richl]

I bought a Royal Gramma 3 weeks ago. He is in a cycled 10 gal QT by himself. He seems to constantly hide out in the decorations and doesn't even venture out when I feed. A couple of times I have found him motionless either in a bottom corner or up top near a powerhead. I thought he might even be dead, but he does swim away back into the decoration if I place a probe near him. Is this the way Gramma's are? Are they nocturnal? Is it because he is by himself and he is not stimulated? I always hypo new fish in QT and he's been at 1.009 for 2 weeks and there's one more week before I start to increase SG. Do Gramma's not tolerate hypo well? Although it's very difficult to observe him closely, I don't see any obvious injury or disease. Can anyone suggest what might be wrong. He's a beautiful fish but his listlessness is very concerning. Any help will be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[beth]

Hypo is fine for this fish.
Likely lack of stimulation. Be sure that you have reduced reflections in .at least the back of the tank with a black cover. Optimize water circulation.
Use a magnifying glass to inspect the fish to be sure that a disease is not present.