Fish Gasping.

If I am reading that correctly you are using an airline (air stone driven) skimmer and have 4 tangs in a 55 gallon tank?

I would say that O2 could very well be the problem.

Do you use glass covers on top of the tank? If so, that will certainly contribute to a lack of gas exchange.

If you are able to, I would set up a small sump and bump up that skimmer to a smaller Octopus or something similar. The overflow alone would help a lot with water agitation.

Hope it works out for you.

 

4 tangs?, i have one yellow tang, and as i said in the last post nothing is covering the tank, but you are right about the skimmer...

 

I'm not sure but can fish actually breath air? there physiology is built to put air from the water by their gills. I don't think they can simply go to the surface to breath.

J

 

Sorry about that, someone else posted that they have 4 tangs. I suppose it helps to read

 

There are a few species that can. But the damsels are not one of them. I think that is probably where the highest concentration of O2 can be found, so they migrate to the surface in a pinch. Just a guess in that last sentence.

 

A few years back we had a very bad winter storm. Many of my friends where with out power for up to 72 hours. The ones that did not take action by getting some sort of generator going saw fish losses. These deaths where do to lack of O2. At no time did the fish seek O2 at the surface of the water. Most stayed at the bottom and eventually died because of no O2.

I just don't think Fish do this to breath O2. It could be to flush their gills with O2 because of an irritation?

J

 

It could be. Fish with TB exhibit gulping symptoms. But that is in response to a lack of oxygen secondary to bacterial infection. I have had fish gulp in response to stress when I changed my aquascape. It is such a non-specific symptom.

 

Thanks for the replys, he has been like it now for a good 2 months, no other symptoms, and not really any other fish do it, that's why i'm a bit puzzled, and i'd agree fish do not take air from the surface of the water not many anyway other than a few tropical fish one being the betta siamese fighting fish and i think the gouramis, Just a shame to see my fish be like this and doing all i can to help ease his symptoms, just not working...