Lost 2 Fish in 2 Days ??????????

Black Phantom · #1 07-13-2008, 03:38 PM

As if one wasn't bad enough. Now I've lost my best fish in the tank. Yesterday I found my Naso Tang doing the "deadmans float". I figured he probably just died of natural causes as I've had him for about five years.
Today my prized Foxface was doing the same thing.

For some reason he got stuck to the intake of my Tunze pump yesterday. I figured he had been there for about an hour. When I shut the pump off he seemed to be fine and even picked at some food. This morning he looked ok but an hour later was toast.
All my other fish and corals look just fine.
Does this sound like coincidence. I've had the Fox for about five years as well.
Nothing in my tank is new or has been changed in the last year.
I have had a bit of an Aiptasia outbreak but I'm sure that couldn't have been a factor.
Any help would be appreciated.

fishoholic · #2 07-13-2008, 03:49 PM

Sounds like it could of been from old age, sorry for your losses.

Drock169 · #3 07-13-2008, 03:51 PM

give us your water parameters, tangs can live up to 20 years, so there may be another cause.

Der_Iron_Chef · #4 07-13-2008, 03:54 PM

I don't think a healthy Foxface could be sucked to the side of a powerhead. To me, that's the key that something was already wrong, that it was weakened and already failing.

Drock169 · #5 07-13-2008, 04:01 PM

I agree with Drew

Black Phantom · #6 07-13-2008, 05:42 PM

I'm at work so I will have to check the water when I get home. The fact that all other animals in my system are doing just fine is strange.
When a fish passes away from old age what signs do they show?
Both of these fish looked ok two days ago and I know that both of them have been eating as they were both fat and sassy.
If my water parameters had strayed then I'm sure some of my more delicate corals would be showing stress and they are all good.
I certainly agree with Iron Chef. No healthy fish would get stuck to a pump.
It really sucks to lose two nice fish at the same time. Especially as they were both the first inhabitants when I set up this tank 5 years ago.

Der_Iron_Chef · #7 07-13-2008, 05:50 PM

What are your other inhabitants?

marie · #8 07-13-2008, 07:04 PM

Migrating intestinal worms can do damage to internal organs and i suspect that this is sometimes the cause of mysterious fish deaths

Black Phantom · #9 07-13-2008, 08:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Der_Iron_Chef

What are your other inhabitants?

Hippo Tang
Lemon Tang
Clown fish
Sargeant major
Misc Anthias
Misc Damsels
Dottybacks

The rest of the tank is all LPS and softies. Everything is open and looking good.
Now that I think of it I did add a Torch Coral about three weeks ago and I have started feeding my corals Cyclopeze
Nothing thats going to make any difference in the fish.
Marie, you talked about intestinal worms. Do they stay present in a tank for a long period of time.
The last fish I added was my Hippo Tang from Golds and that was around two years ago.

marie · #10 07-13-2008, 09:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Black Phantom

...
Marie, you talked about intestinal worms. Do they stay present in a tank for a long period of time.
The last fish I added was my Hippo Tang from Golds and that was around two years ago.

It's possible that one of your wild caught fish came in with them and seeing as how tangs are known poop eaters (my foxface eats poop as well) they could of picked up the worms from eating poop.
I don't know if intestinal worms can live freely in a tank but there is no reason the foxface (or the tang) couldn't have had them for the last 5 yrs and showed no outward symptoms