Seahorse getting black spots?

Recently I have noticed that one of my seahorses is getting this dark spots all over her body.. and today she has been acting up and not eating her food...So I looked closely at her body and realized that she doesnt move her right fin (next to her face) and also she looks like she has a dent under her eye.. dont know if its that visible on the picture but thats the best i could do... and also what is the deal with her getting all these dark spots all over her body... my other seahorses looks much more yellow and has no dark spots like this one..

Salinity - 1.023
PH - 8.1
Ammonia - 0
Nitrate - 20
KH - 12*dKH or 214.8ppm
Calcium - 380mg/L (ppm)


any ideas?


PS. I feed them with mysis shrimp and sometimes i throw them some brine shrimp.. today she didnt even try the mysis so i try offering her some brine and she just took one piece and thats it.

http://i941.photobucket.com/albums/ad251/petmania/IMG_5792.jpg

 

She's a cute little girl!
Seahorses need very good water and really should be kept in a tank where there is no competition for food from more agressive fish. Could be the clowns are stressing her or an issue with your water params. N03 should be <20ppm.
seahorse.org - Care Guide
Good luck and hope she gets to feeling better!

 

I added more results for my other tests... and about competition.. my seahorses eat directly from my hand (yes i do keep my hand for like 10mins in the tank)... and leftovers go to the clowns


Off Topic: why does my tank looks like it has FUEL in the water.. you can see on the picture how it has those stains if you look up the water..or does this happen to everyone? does it have to do anything with when i added Reef buffer?

 

I'm not seahorse keeper sorry can't help with your first problem. Solution to off topic problem is to use surface skimmer. The film like layer on the water surface is bad for your tank because it minimize aeration.

 

First of all, the black spots themselves are most likely just the colouration the seahorse uses to self camouflage and can be affected by surroundings and by stress.
You haven't mentioned critical things other than there are clowns in the tank.
What is the tank size, water temperature and what other tankmates does it have.
Seahorses fall victim to a lot of things, one being stress from faster moving fish, to the point they may stop eating. It's also possible many times that the slow eating, picky seahorse, doesn't have time to make the selection it wants before it gets eaten by another fish, even if the pieces are not immediately eaten.
Seahorses while having grown accustomed to the parasites they have been reared with, succumb to those of other seahorses or fish reared somewhere else, especially from the wild. Even other seahorses from another captive bred source are known to cause this problem.
Temperature comes into play as the seahorses are extrememly susceptible to bacterial infestations.
Because the bacteria multiply exponentially above 74°F, the recommended tank temperatures are 68 to 74°, EVEN THOUGH the seahorse normally is found in waters around 80° or so.
In their normal habitat, the water is continually changing, but in your tank, it is always there, with the bacteria potentially increasing by the minute. The higher the temp, the faster the growth.
Seahorse losses from bacterial problems are probably the number one cause of mortality, with parasites coming second.
Now, does this mean that seahorses CAN'T be kept in reefing conditions? NO!!
BUT, for every one that DOES manage to survive, there are many many more that perish in the attempt to do so.
For the best chance of success with your seahorse, keep a seahorse specific, species specific, temperature controlled tank and only buy TRUE CAPTIVE BRED that are raised in artificial salt water, not in ocean water as offshore breeders use.
I have even gone to the point that all five (soon to be six) seahorse tanks have been sterilized and everything in them including hitches and live rock, before cycling the tanks with ammonium chloride.
Also, as already mentioned, check out the best site on the internet, (or in print for that matter) on the keeping of seahorses, seahorse.org.

 

Ok thanx alot.. But do you have any idea what should I do with that scar she has under her eye.. And the fact that she isn't moving her fin?

 

I noticed that. It's from not enough surface agitation and is probably the residue from the mysis you're feeding.

 

I personally haven't encountered that situation so I can't advise properly.
However, if you post on the seahorse.org site in the "Emergency" forum, someone will help you out and Ann especially has a lot of information at her fingertips to help in such situations.
YOU MUST, however, first read the sticky at the top of the Emergency forum, and in your own post on the emergency, give ALL the requested information, not just what you think is pertinent. There are just too many factors affecting seahorse health that you can't just pick and choose what to supply.
Good luck!

 

Thanx again

 

I got rid of the "oil slick" by having a powerhead angled up toward the top of the water so that it breaks the surface tension.