Losing Coral Beauty and don't know why...

JCareyETexas · 09/18/2011, 05:12 PM

Picked her up along with a cleaner shrimp on Friday. Acclimated using float method. She immediately went into hiding which I suspected. Breathing rate appears normal. Coloration normal. But now she is kind of laying around listless towards the bottom of the tank.
I put some algae on a rock and put it down towards her hiding spot to see if she'd nibble on anything and swam out of hiding and looked great. After about fifteen minutes she went back to her hiding spot and is back to the above mentioned behavior.

Water Params Checked earlier this afternoon:

NO2: 0
NH3: 0
NO3: >5
pH: 8.3
SG: 1.023

Tried feeding mysis and formula 2

JCareyETexas · 09/18/2011, 05:13 PM

......and FWIW the cleaner shrimp is doing great

Sk8r · 09/18/2011, 05:20 PM

Turn the lights down. THey may be spooking her. They're a very timid species. I take it you didn't quarantine: she may have ich in the gills. If she does, you need to go over to the FIsh DIsease forum and start reading stickies. I also hope by 'float method' you didn't then open the bag into your display tank: never do that: transfers ich. And 'float method' doesn't equalize salinity if the bag's not penetrated. Salinity difference can be damaging. Did she and the cleaner originate from the same water system or not? If she was from 1.019 salinity and your tank is 1.026, that could be a problem.

Outside of these things, she may just take time to settle in: crossing fingers for you.

JCareyETexas · 09/18/2011, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sk8r

Turn the lights down. THey may be spooking her. They're a very timid species. I take it you didn't quarantine: she may have ich in the gills. If she does, you need to go over to the FIsh DIsease forum and start reading stickies. I also hope by 'float method' you didn't then open the bag into your display tank: never do that: transfers ich. And 'float method' doesn't equalize salinity if the bag's not penetrated. Salinity difference can be damaging. Did she and the cleaner originate from the same water system or not? If she was from 1.019 salinity and your tank is 1.026, that could be a problem.

Outside of these things, she may just take time to settle in: crossing fingers for you.

You are correct in assuming that I didn't quarantine. Unfortunately, I do not have the space or equipment to facilitate a quarantine tank. I will reevaluate this as I have lost one (hopefully not another) fish now and do not take that lightly.
That being said she did come from a trusted source who qt's fish, and treats if necessary, before putting them in his displays. His SG is 1.022, saw him test it myself when I asked that specific question. Shrimp and fish came from same water system.

Megatrev62 · 09/18/2011, 09:53 PM

FWIW I have a coral beauty nearly month now and did not QT.I have an older thread on it. The SG. from the store and my tank was out by .001 which got that fish in the tank in a hurry.(SK8R-Thanks again) Ate since day one and eating everything since. In the meantime angels can be quite delicate in new systems. Good luck.

hollister · 09/18/2011, 10:04 PM

Coral beauties are an expert coral and like a mature well established tank and even then can be difficult.

JCareyETexas · 09/18/2011, 11:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hollister

Coral beauties are an expert coral and like a mature well established tank and even then can be difficult.

Talking about the angelfish here, actually supposed to be a fairly easy fish to keep.

JCareyETexas · 09/18/2011, 11:31 PM

So, I did lose the fish.... Very discouraging.

Sk8r · 09/19/2011, 08:41 AM

Hold off on angels until your tank is a bit more mature. And prep a fully cycled qt with live rock, basically a temporary dt, for your next one: borrow rock and sand from your regular dt, and run it with no light. People always think it cruel to isolate a fish and not put it with 'friends.' The fish doesn't see it that way: isolation and available food means safety to feed without competition or stress. There are very few species we keep that are really gregarious; and if you can introduce a hard-to-keep fish into a place with food and shadows, they're generally good with it.

I'm also sure that fish died of something besides starvation: fish routinely go 2 weeks without eating during collection and distribution, and can easily go that. Ich is a possibility. Watch your other fish carefully. The other possibility is that your friend sold you a fish straight from distribution that was already in trouble. Capture by cyanide figures in some collection processes: the fact that the fish dies later is irrelevant to the collector, who's already paid.

sushibug · 09/19/2011, 01:27 PM

does the float method involve you putting small amounts of water into the bag every couple of minutes? its basically like drip acclimating... it seems like a great idea on paper and i've never lost livestock yet doing this.

EDIT: and do not use dump the water from the bag into the tank. toss that out.

stingythingy45 · 09/19/2011, 01:35 PM

I agree with sk8 that starvation was not a factor.Most likely a parasite is now inhabiting that tank.
I've had a Coral Beauty for over 4 years now.She was one of my first fish.

swflfisher · 09/19/2011, 02:17 PM

do you all keep a qt set-up at all time? Or a tank ready to put your tank water in if needed?

09/18/2011, 05:12 PM	#1
JCareyETexas Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Tyler, Texas Posts: 294	Losing Coral Beauty and don't know why... Picked her up along with a cleaner shrimp on Friday. Acclimated using float method. She immediately went into hiding which I suspected. Breathing rate appears normal. Coloration normal. But now she is kind of laying around listless towards the bottom of the tank. I put some algae on a rock and put it down towards her hiding spot to see if she'd nibble on anything and swam out of hiding and looked great. After about fifteen minutes she went back to her hiding spot and is back to the above mentioned behavior. Water Params Checked earlier this afternoon: NO2: 0 NH3: 0 NO3: >5 pH: 8.3 SG: 1.023 Tried feeding mysis and formula 2 __________________ 125 DT/PVC bottom, Trigger Systems Ruby 36 sump LED's here I come!! Current Tank Info: 125 gallon mixed reef

09/18/2011, 05:13 PM	#2
JCareyETexas Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Tyler, Texas Posts: 294	......and FWIW the cleaner shrimp is doing great __________________ 125 DT/PVC bottom, Trigger Systems Ruby 36 sump LED's here I come!! Current Tank Info: 125 gallon mixed reef

09/18/2011, 05:20 PM	#3
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	Turn the lights down. THey may be spooking her. They're a very timid species. I take it you didn't quarantine: she may have ich in the gills. If she does, you need to go over to the FIsh DIsease forum and start reading stickies. I also hope by 'float method' you didn't then open the bag into your display tank: never do that: transfers ich. And 'float method' doesn't equalize salinity if the bag's not penetrated. Salinity difference can be damaging. Did she and the cleaner originate from the same water system or not? If she was from 1.019 salinity and your tank is 1.026, that could be a problem. Outside of these things, she may just take time to settle in: crossing fingers for you. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

09/18/2011, 09:53 PM	#5
Megatrev62 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: ST.John's Newfoundland Canada Posts: 1,712	FWIW I have a coral beauty nearly month now and did not QT.I have an older thread on it. The SG. from the store and my tank was out by .001 which got that fish in the tank in a hurry.(SK8R-Thanks again) Ate since day one and eating everything since. In the meantime angels can be quite delicate in new systems. Good luck. __________________ Please understand honey,it's not just me!!! Current Tank Info: 75 gallon, mixed reef,fuge.

09/18/2011, 11:31 PM	#8
JCareyETexas Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Tyler, Texas Posts: 294	So, I did lose the fish.... Very discouraging. __________________ 125 DT/PVC bottom, Trigger Systems Ruby 36 sump LED's here I come!! Current Tank Info: 125 gallon mixed reef

09/18/2011, 10:04 PM	#6
hollister Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Posts: 2,037	Coral beauties are an expert coral and like a mature well established tank and even then can be difficult.

09/19/2011, 08:41 AM	#9
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	Hold off on angels until your tank is a bit more mature. And prep a fully cycled qt with live rock, basically a temporary dt, for your next one: borrow rock and sand from your regular dt, and run it with no light. People always think it cruel to isolate a fish and not put it with 'friends.' The fish doesn't see it that way: isolation and available food means safety to feed without competition or stress. There are very few species we keep that are really gregarious; and if you can introduce a hard-to-keep fish into a place with food and shadows, they're generally good with it. I'm also sure that fish died of something besides starvation: fish routinely go 2 weeks without eating during collection and distribution, and can easily go that. Ich is a possibility. Watch your other fish carefully. The other possibility is that your friend sold you a fish straight from distribution that was already in trouble. Capture by cyanide figures in some collection processes: the fact that the fish dies later is irrelevant to the collector, who's already paid. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

09/19/2011, 01:27 PM	#10
sushibug Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 76	does the float method involve you putting small amounts of water into the bag every couple of minutes? its basically like drip acclimating... it seems like a great idea on paper and i've never lost livestock yet doing this. EDIT: and do not use dump the water from the bag into the tank. toss that out.

09/19/2011, 01:35 PM	#11
stingythingy45 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: MA Posts: 3,296	I agree with sk8 that starvation was not a factor.Most likely a parasite is now inhabiting that tank. I've had a Coral Beauty for over 4 years now.She was one of my first fish. __________________ Bob Current Tank Info: 90 gallon,mixed Reef,2-250 watt Optix 3 pendants(Phoenix 14K)2-54 watt T5 Super actnics ,ASM G-2 Gate/recirc mods,70 gal. basement sump,20L ref

09/19/2011, 02:17 PM	#12
swflfisher Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: SW Florida Posts: 70	do you all keep a qt set-up at all time? Or a tank ready to put your tank water in if needed?

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