found the killer

[salazar3126]

my fish suddenly started dying and i could not find out why? by the time i notice they were laying on the bottom chewed up, i thought they had died and the crabs got them! So I come home from work today and find my carpet anemone with my longnose butterflyfish in its mouth. I had the capert for about 3mts now why all of a sudden is it eatting my fish?

[bertoni]

That's how they make a living in the wild, eating fish. It's just doing its natural job.

[salazar3126]

so im thinking im going to have to get rid of it

[bertoni]

A clownfish, if it decided to use the anemone as a host, might keep other fish away a bit better. I guess I wouldn't trust it, even so.

[discus510]

Originally Posted by bertoni

That's how they make a living in the wild, eating fish. It's just doing its natural job.

i guess when there hungry they gotta get food somehow. guess fish swim a lil too close

[salazar3126]

yea a clownfish has been hosting it since I gotten it. i thought maybe if i feed it more naybe it will leave my fish alone.

[Reeefer]

What have you been feeding it and how often?

[thile123]

It seems like that carpet might be too big for your tank; fish when have room should be able to get around anemone easily.

[insane]

This is why you should always research livestock before you buy it. Then you would have known from the start that it would eat your fish. That is what carpets do.

[dwinter]

I disagree with insane, I have had 2 11" carpets in my reef tank with no loss. I read somewhere that you need to have moonlights if you keep carpet anemones. At night fish may not see the carpet and wind up as food, if you have moonlights, the fish will see the carpet and know to avoid it. In this case tank size might also be an issue.

I don't think feeding the anemone would have an effect on them snagging a fish; from my experience with them, they generally only move if something like flow is not right for them. Aside from that they only move if something makes contact with them.

[bertoni]

Feeding the anemone might have the effect of reducing its danger to fish, because anemones can control the firing of their nematocysts. That said, I still wouldn't trust a carpet all that much.

[jenglish]

You can take steps to lessen risks but not avoid them. Carpets eat fish. You can feed a wolf all you want but if you keep him in a sheep pen you are asking for trouble

EDIT: And it is often territorial aggression that chases a fish in a panic into the mouth of a carpet.

[insane]

Originally Posted by dwinter

I disagree with insane, I have had 2 11" carpets in my reef tank with no loss. I read somewhere that you need to have moonlights if you keep carpet anemones. At night fish may not see the carpet and wind up as food, if you have moonlights, the fish will see the carpet and know to avoid it. In this case tank size might also be an issue.

I don't think feeding the anemone would have an effect on them snagging a fish; from my experience with them, they generally only move if something like flow is not right for them. Aside from that they only move if something makes contact with them.

Knowing as much as you can before you buy is always the best approach to take when getting any type of animal.

You need to know not only what its enviorment should be, you also need to know what it does, what it can do, what it might do, what it eats, what it might eat, what problems might happen, what problems do happen, what to do in the event of a problem. The more you know about the animal the less surprises you will have down the road.

I would never keep very expensive fish in a less than giant tank with a carpet. If I did, I would assume the risk of losing the fish.

In the life of a carpet, fish happens.

[salazar3126]

Thanks for all the advice. I need know that it ate small fish but i guess i just didnt think mine were small fish. My carpet stays in one place and never move. I do like the idea of moon lights might give them a try.