Dead Clownfish

Hello all,

I have a 55g tank, and the first two fish I put in were a pair of maroon clownfish, I just got home from work and found one of the up in the corner of the tank stuck to my powerhead. My levels are

Salinity - 1.025-1.026
PH. - 8.2
Ammonia- 0
Nitrite - 0
Nitrate - between 0ppm and 5ppm

The other clownfish I have in there is as happy as could be swimming around and into the currents.

What do you think happened?

 

Sorry for the loss. Could just be stress related, some fish respond differently to new tanks/being moved. If it were disease it would probably affect both fish. How long were they in the tank and how old is your tank?

 

How was the tank cycled and for how long?
How were the fish acclimated?
I presume the fish were not QT, so a host of disease are possible. Do you see ANYTHING abnormal on the dead OR live fish?

 

I would hazard to guess that new tank syndrome along with acclimation stress played a part.

The tank values maybe fine but those are the only variables we can test for. Other variable contribute to the stabilization of the system.

The clown my have carried a common parasite that you did not recognize or the clown may have had a weakened immune system from fighting off the common parasites and the stress of a new tank and acclimation was just too much for it. It's not uncommon.

Have you considered adding more rock to your tank?

Sorry for the loss I know it's disappointing.

 

sorry to hear that, i have a gold stripe maroon clown that turned 12 last month. she is real nasty. good luck adding fish now that the maroon was in there first. they like to boss the tank.

 

The tank was cycled for a month before I added any fish, they were added 3 weeks ago, so the tank is almost 2 months old.

Right now I have about 50lbs of rock. I acclimated them using the drip method and it took about 2 hours or so. No, I did not quarantine them.

I have been debating over the last 3 weeks whether or not I should give the maroons up to my lfs and start over because of their territorial nature, so maybe I should just give the other maroon back and start over.

 

Sorry for your loss. But I would do as you said and return the other maroon. If you do get any other clowns, add them last.

 

What did you use to kick start the cycle?

 

I used live sand to kick start the cycle, and I waited until I had an algae bloom that disappeared before adding any livestock.

 

Very possibly killed by aggression