A Mystery

[melliemom]

I bought a Golden Head Sleeper Goby a few weeks ago. Last week, after I had to empty my tank to move it to install my new sump and Fluval filters, I put him back in a never saw him again. This week, we replaced it with the same thing. We saw him for a couple days and then, we haven't seen him since the day before yesterday. Yesterday, I added a Royal Gamma. He was in hiding for awhile but came out for awhile last night. Today, I still can't find the Goby and now, I can't see where the Gamma is hiding.

I have a 55 gallon tank which I had to put in a divider when we temporarily adopted a panther grouper that I am now stuck with. the divider is secure and I can't see there is enough room for a fish to jump over. The tank has about 50 lbs. of live rock with a lot of nooks and crannies. My tank is stocked with a ruby anenome, an atlantic anenome, a few blue mushrooms, a fuzzy ruby, some green star polyps, 2 clown fish, a blue tang, and a skunk shrimp (yes, Finding Nemo fish-I have a 3 year old). There are also 9 nacirius snails and 4 hermit crabs. I have covers on my tank except there is a small opening (about 3 inches where the overflow box hangs and the inlet hose comes in, next to a power head.

My question is, where did my fish go?

Thank you,
Ann

[Parrothead]

If I had to guess, I'd say they are either hiding in the rocks still, too shy to come out.

Or a couple of your ane. are known to dine on anything that gets close enough to snag.

Did you check behind the tank just to make sure they didn't jump out?????

[Ninong]

Hi Ann,




I'm afraid I've never heard of a "ruby anemone." Do you know any other names for that one? How large is it?

By "Atlantic anemone," you probably mean Condylactis gigantea. How large is this anemone? If it is large enough it will eat small bottom-dwelling fish. It's certainly a risky choice in an aquarium with small fish and not a good choice as a surrogate host for your "Nemo" clownfish. Obviously it's not a natural host for any clownfish as there are no clownfish in the Atlantic.

If any of your anemones are large enough, that might explain where your small fish went. It all depends on how large they are relative to the size of the fish.

If you haven't done so yet, I urge you to google the words "panther grouper." This fish grows very fast. It has a maximum adult size of 24" but can easily get to 12" or more in a home aquarium. It will eat any and all fish that it can fit into its mouth. You really have no choice here but to find another home for your grouper. And the sooner the better. If necessary, just give it back to the store.

Once you remove the divider in your 55-gallon aquarium, your other fish will have more room. Right now your tank is over-stocked. Even with the divider gone, a 55-gallon aquarium is really not large enough for a regal tang; however, you already have it so you will have to make the best of it. Removing the divider will help a lot. The divider has to go very soon if you want to save the tang.

You say you have nine Nassarius snails, so I assume you have a sand bed of some sort, right? These snails require sand to bury in.

I'm afraid whoever is selling you these fish is not a very responsible person. They should have asked you the size of your aquarium before selling you that panther grouper. I realize you have a few anemones and some mushrooms in your tank but it's really more like a FOWLR tank at the moment (especially with that grouper in there), so I'm going to copy your thread to Lee's forum because he can provide you with links to some of his threads on how best to get a good start in this hobby. That way you will have the thread in two forums.

Good luck!

[melliemom]

Thank you. I would not have considered the anenome as the cuplrit at this point as they are still somewhat small, about a 3" diameter.

I'm sorry, it is a Rose Anemone http://www.marinecenter.com/inverts/...s/roseanemone/.

I got the Atlantic Anemone because it was easy to care for and pretty, they didn't mention it would eat my fish.

You're right about the grouper. I have been contemplating giving it up since the beginning of July. If forgot to mention that is when we went away one night for the 4th. When we got home both clownfish had dissappeared. They were very small and I think could get eaten.

I looked behind the tank, emptied all the filters, stuck my hand in the overflow box, everywhere. I even felt around the small area under the tank stand in the back, emptied all the cabinets since it has an open back. I just can't explain it.

My tang is only 2" and my clowns are just a little smaller. This last goby had to be 4" long. The Gramma was very little, probably bite size if the anenome wanted to eat it.

Thank you for adding this to a second forum, I could use all the help I can get.

Where is the best place to get fish info? I researched that Atlantic Anemone but never saw anything about them eating the fish out of the tank.

I was just wondering what my tank is considered, reef, marine, or what. I never hear of a FOWLR tank but it makes sense.

Oh, I have small crushed coral in the bottom of the tank. Larger than sand but small enough for the goby to sift.

[Ninong]

I don't think your 3" rose bubble-tip anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor) ate any of your fish. Whether your condy anemone is to blame depends on how big it is. They can get more than 12" and have been known to eat any small fish that get too close.

Your tank right now is half FOWLR (the half with the panther grouper) and half wannabe reef. I think your first order of business is to find a new home for the grouper so that you can remove the divider. Then you have to slow down and not add anything new for a few weeks. I'm not sure what sort of lighting you have but it may need upgrading if you intend keeping anything more demanding than mushrooms. By the way, your rose BTA requires fairly strong lighting, too. And it should be fed two or three times a week. I suggest you read this article: Be a Host to Your Anemone, by Dr. Ron Shimek.

There is a lot of information online but I think you should get a good book that covers the basics. I would recommend Robert Fenner's Conscientious Marine Aquarist, Second Edition. It covers the basics and it includes nice coverage of the most common aquarium fishes.

[melliemom]

Thank you. Yes, definetly, the grouper will be gone very soon and so too the divider. I have Coralife T5 lighting. There are 4 types of bulbs and mine takes two, I'm using one each of the two lowest (I can't find the booklet that told me exactly which, but I know come change time, that it's stamped on the bulbs.

I wouldn't have believed the Atlantic anemone ate anything but the mysis I feed it, but I can't come up with any other explanation as to where all those fish went.

Some lady that owns a fish store I checke out yesterday tried to convince me I have a crab in my live rock and ate them. After 1 1/2 years in my tank, I find it hard to believe it has been hiding there all this time and just now decided to come out for dinner. I won't be going back there again. I was looking for the saltwater testing kit and she tried to sell me on something else instead. She had tried that on me before when she tried to sell me every kind of high end piece of equipment and fish she was selling.

I feed both anemones daily with the other fish and shrimp. The anemones and shrimp each get a squirt from the turkey baster before I pour the rest into both side of the tank the all the rest of the fish.

I will see about that book, thank you. I haven't found anything helpful at Barnes and Nobles or any of the fish stores that are really helpful.

If it is the anemone, how do I find out for sure and will it have to be separate?. it's sad because it's only a few inches big and really pretty. The Rose is even bigger and that is only a few inches around too.

I am tickled that I have to be doing something right otherwise the green star polyps wouldn't have started growning 8 months after the live rock was added to our tank and they are still going strong. I least, that's what I keep telling myself.

[Ninong]

If you have a 48" long light fixture, then each lamp is 54 watts. That would be adequate for some soft corals but not hard corals, clams or anemones. You should have four 54w tubes.

Your anemones don't need to be fed every day. Two or three times a week would be sufficient. If the condy anemone is only three or four inches across, it's doubtful that it ate any of your fish. If it were 8-12" across, then probably. I doubt that you have a crab large enough to eat your fish that you haven't seen by now. The "mystery" persists.

Green star polyps are easy. In fact, getting rid of them is the problem. They have a tendency to spread all over the place.

You need test kits for calcium, alkalinity, magnesium and nitrate. Those have to be monitored weekly. You also need to know your salinity. It should be monitored weekly. Your pH will take care of itself if your calcium and alkalinity are balanced and within normal parameters.

You will have to have some way to maintain calcium, magnesium and alkalinity if you hope to keep corals. I suggest you read Dr. Randy Holmes-Farley's article on how to choose a method for doing this:

How to Select a Calcium and Alkalinity Supplementation Scheme
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/feb2003/chem.htm

I think the most important thing you can do is to get those two books I recommended. You can't get into this hobby without a basic understanding of how to properly run things and even though the boards may be helpful, you really need everything laid out in black and white in one place where you can refer back to it. The boards are most helpful if you already have a good understanding of what it's all about. I wouldn't count on most LFS people for this sort of help. And in the future, never buy anything without looking it up first online to see if it's suitable for your situation.

P.S. -- Make sure that your RBTA (rose bubble-tip anemone) and your condy anemone are well separated in your tank, preferably at opposite sides of the tank (once the grouper is gone). Anemones of different species will engage in warfare, including chemical warfare, if they are too close to each other.

[melliemom]

I'm not interrested in hard corals right now, I like the free moving things in th tank. But I'm sure that will probably change some day.

The anemones have each taken turns locating a favorite place in the tank. The closest they've come to each other is about 5 inches apart. Isn't that funny, the chemical war. Who would have thought something so peaceful could be so wretched.

The fixture is 48" long. I will back off on the anemone feeding right away, thank you. And definetly will be searching the book starts immediately. Thank you for the resources. I appreciate any help I can get, especially if it's from someone who knows what they are talking about.

I do have a hydrometer that I test on a regular basis, and as much creap as I get and continue to knock back into the tank, It's always been in the green zone.

I think I found a new home for the grouper and with luck, it will be gone this Sunday.

In the meantime, I'm now scared to add anything else to my tank anymore. From what it sounds like, it's going to disappear in a few days, or worse.

I just wish we could figure out my original question, where did my fish go?

[Ninong]

If your fish didn't jump out of the tank and they have never come out from hiding in the live rock, then either they died inside the live rock and their carcasses were disposed of by bacteria and carrion-eaters or something in the tank ate them. I seriously doubt that either of your anemones ate them and your panther grouper couldn't eat them if there was no way for them to get over to his side of the tank.

I guess you will have to chalk it up to mysterious disappearance.