Fish Dying! ID please...

[SKRIZ]

Recently I have added a school of chromis to the tank. I had 21 to start. I now have 13 left. 8 have died within 8 days. The last one to die had some white spots (which do not look like ich), but this just may be a coincidence. I didn't see any of the others dying to see if they had the same affliction. The living ones do not have these spots. What's the problem? What can I do?

Water parameters: Ammonia 0ppm, ph 8.4, salinity 1.024, temp 78F, alk 10 dkh, Calcium 375ppm (just fired up the calc reactor and am working on driving this up).

I run carbon and ozone.

Thanks!

[leebca]

Sorry to hear of the fish problems.

The visual condition points to a bacterial infection. The cause of which can be put into one of two categories:
1) Nutritional deficiencies
2) Environmental

It's either one, the other, or both.

The fish need an antibiotic treatment AND for you to find the cause(s) of the problem and fix it. This treatment is to be done in a hospital tank/aquarium because such a treatment in the display will cause a biological wipe out.

I would start by using either Spectrogram or BOTH Maracyn One and Maracyn Two for Saltwater fishes.

In the hunt for what has caused this you want to:
1) Verify the ozone equipment hasn't gone astray and is overdosing the tank;
2) Look for any signs of water poisoning;
3) Review their foods and feeding habits and be sure they are eating the proper foods;
4) You don't mention tank size, so there could be a space stress; and
5) Look for a source of water pollution you don't normally test for (e.g., organic build up).

The stress of the addition of the new fishes probably set off this condition, but fish in a proper environment with proper nutrition usually can fight off a bacterial infection. Something isn't right.

[SKRIZ]

I have double checked everything. ORP is maintaining at around 410. The system is 750g. I highly doubt 21 chromis is really going to have any affect on the water. Also, they are the only fish in the tank right now...so no bullys!

What bothers me is that the corals are doing fine. I also have a tube anenome that is doing really well. I would have figured they would show signs of poor water quality.

I feed frozen brine, blood worms, and flake. They eat very well.

I did just start to run the calcium reactor, but it has not had any affect on the ph. I am easing it into the system.

[leebca]

Fish and invertebrates are not affected by the same water quality issues. A prime example is that corals are sensitive to nitrates, but marine fish can handle quite a high concentration of nitrates. I would not assume all is fine when the invertebrates are doing well.

You've listed all the foods I don't recommend routinely feeding marine fishes. They do not contain enough of, nor the proper nutrients needed by fish in order to remain healthy. If you'll take the time, this will explain why they are not optimal foods and what foods should be fed to those fish: Feeding Marine Fish and Fish Nutrition

In their current condition, the fish should also be fed immune boosting nutrients: Fish Immune Boosters

I appreciate how unreasonable things may seem or sound, but there is often a wide gap between what is expected and what actually happens in this hobby. When a bio load changes on a system, all bacteria have to adjust to it and that takes time. There is often a bloom or shift in microbe populations until they settle into their 'normal' populations. That is one reason to go slow, including slowly adding fish to an established system.

[SKRIZ]

Thanks Lee,

THat was A LOT of info! Would making my own food from chopped seafood fortified with vitamins and fats be a good idea? if not, can you make a suggestion as to what I can get or make?

thanks again!

[leebca]

I am always in favor of making marine fish foods. The aquarist can control the ingredients and guarantee nutritional content.

But don't assume this means gathering up fish flesh. That would just as wrong as using the wrong foods. Fish need whole sea foods and the aquarist has to think in those terms.

There are some fine prepared foods on the market, the aquarist just to read the ingredients label. Don't go by what the name of the product is, but decide what fishes the product is good for according to the contents.

I don't recommend brands or foods, keeping below the radar of taking sides. But if the aquarist is alert and wary, the best decision can be made.

We discussed homemade foods in this short thread:
Fish Food Formulas for Membership Review

You're still welcome to contribute to the above old thread if you want to post a recipe and have others take a look at it. Just keep in mind that the recipe has to be more than just flesh -- it needs to be the whole marine organism as much as possible. Exceptions are squid, scallop, and marine shrimp tails.