Cleaner or Pepermint shrimp kill fish???

[dreed]

I introduced a 6 line to my 65g tank yesterday. He started out in the bag looking bored but healthy. He turned upside down in it but would go upright when I'd add some water or wave by him. After a 1 hour and 45 minute acclimatization, I added him in. He went down to the rock work and the cleaner shrimp was after him like food. The 6 line made his way into the rocks and the shrimp stayed away from him. We watched the fish come in and out of the rocks in a curious manner but he didn't show signs of hard breathing or discomfort. After I got up this morning, I noticed niether of my shrimp were out for feeding. They were back in the rocks playing with a dead 6 line.

The fact that both shrimp were after him as he was introduced made me think that maybe they wanted to attack him. THen again, he was having problems in the bag during the acclimatization period.

All tank parameters are great. My Mag is about 1400 but everything else is in the green.

Would the shrimp kill a fish or did I have problems from the start with this fish. His water was at 1.020 when I started and I got it to 1.025 before I had to add him in to my 1.026 tank. I let him sit in the 1.025 for about 20 minutes before adding him.

What do you guys think?

Thanks
Dave

[reef-man_d-man]

Hard to say since the shrimp have been picking at the body, BTW were the lights on when you added the 6 line?

[dreed]

They were on when he was in the bag and on for 15 minutes or so when he was in the tank. We wanted him to see where he wanted to go. The lights go out but the daylight is still enough for them to see anything. I have moon lights too that do great.

Does that make a difference when adding livestock? The lights are what I'm refering to.

Thanks
Dave

[reef-man_d-man]

My personal opinion especially for inverts is to turn the lights off so that they have time to find a good spot without being seen by other tank residents. Also some inverts are exteremly senstive to salinity changes and need to have 1.5 to 2 hours of acclimation.

[D to the P]

I doubt that the shrimp would kill them to eat it, but it is possible that while the sixline was trying to calm down, or even later on while it was trying to sleep that the cleaner shrimps could have agitated it, and caused too much stress. The fact that they were eating it after words doesn't necessarily mean they did it though. Sixlines are horrible at acclimating in tanks, and the fact that yours sounded like it was already dying in the bag would just lead me to think this fish was doomed from the start. Once the fish are acclimated they are great, but they ship poorly, and it can be a real pain sometimes to find one that acclimates well. Although some people have no problems at all.

[cczarnik]

+1 to D, I think you had a sick / dying fish and the clean up crew was doing its job. Sorry for your loss.

[reef-man_d-man]

Does the store you got this six line at have a guarantee?

[dreed]

Nope. I'm headed about 30 miles south to see if a different place has some. The local place has been good to me but they only had this one.

I think I'd have to agree with what you guys are saying. It only makes sense. He was iffy in the bag. It could have been my introduction method too. I don't drip but I let the bag set int he water for about 20 minutes and with a small piece of hose I'll drop about 10 drops of tank water into the bad every 5-8 minutes. It's worked for my corals and my other inhabitants with no problem. I'll try again with a different one.

I just hate to think that he suffered and that it was my doing.

Thanks
Dave

[huntinweim]

How long was he in the bag before you started the accl.?

[dreed]

Probably about 10-15 minutes. I had to drive home.

[D to the P]

You acclimation method sounds fine, like I said, they are just sensitive to when first introduced.

[dreed]

Thanks. Hopefully tomorrow is more successful.


I appreciate the info guts.

Dave

[Sk8r]

THat big a salinity difference in only a few hours is very likely a problem. NExt fish, set up a quarantine tank at 1.020 (if that's where your fish store/supplier operates) and gradually, over several weeks, top off with salt water from your tank. If you match salinity in your quarantine setup, you need only a cursory acclimation for temperature, etc: the salinity will be spot-on.

You can set up a qt tank with a cheap corner filter and some spare tank water. Just adjust the salinity and leave him in quarantine for 2-4 weeks...four will be sure to turn up any disease he has, so that you can treat it there and not take out your tank.

I also strongly advise springing for a refractometer if you don't have one: they're safe, accurate, nearly indestructible, and they are the way to go when measuring salinity of small amounts of water.

LFSs keep low salinity to lower the incidence of ich and such, BUT when you bring it up to norm, that's a bit of a shock to the kidneys. I don't like cleaner shrimp in a small tank because they don't take no for an answer, but I doubt they killed this fish: they were just disposing of him, which is what you want them to do with a dead fish.