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02-03-2008, 05:56 PM
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#1 (permalink)
| | Peppermint Shrimp
Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Detroit, Michigan
Posts: 428
|  Sailfin tang died suddenly!!! Help!!
I have a 120gal tank with live rock, a dogface puffer, a honey comb puffer, a piccaso Trigger, a long spine Urchin, and a snowflake eel and I had a sailfin Tang. All the fish were similar in size, eating well and never fighting. last week all of a sudden the tang just stopped being able to swim he was on his side and floated to the bottom I removed him from the tank and put him on his own so he wouldnt infect any of the other fish if he was sick and shortly after he died. I checked all my levels and salinity and they were all perfect!
Could he maybe have run into my urchin or something?? why did he die?? | 
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02-03-2008, 06:11 PM
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#2 (permalink)
| | Peppermint Shrimp
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 415
Karma: 175
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First off make sure you have a reliable test kit. Do you have any live rock? Eels and triggers are very messy fish and can quickly foul the water. Also it's a good chance that your predatory fish out competed the tang for food since tangs can be very timid at feeding time whereas puffers,eels, and triggers normally snap it up as soon as it hits the water. If he just stopped swimming and died then I'm willing to bet that this is what happened.
Were you feeding the tang any supplemental algae? The good stuff, dried, that you have to buy, not the nuisance algae, hair,etc.. What type of food was he getting? They require special consideration due to their omnivorous diet.
_________
55gal,216 watt Tek T5, 45#LR, 45#LS, 3 maxi-jet 900's on a natural wavemaker timer,phosban reactor, 5 gal fuge (built out of standard 10 gallon tank) with chaeto and feather caulerpa, sealife systems protein skimmer, wet/dry, 3 blue/green chromi, 1 skunk cleaner shrimp, 1 coral beauty,1 scopas tang, 2 false percs, 5 mexican turbo snails, assorted dwarf blue leg hermits, astrea snails, and nerite snails | |
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02-03-2008, 06:19 PM
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#3 (permalink)
| | Peppermint Shrimp
Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Detroit, Michigan
Posts: 428
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We have about 60lbs live rock+ we were feeding often flakes, Mysis shrimp (which it oddly enough seemed to eat) and also phytoplankton. But you could be right, it seemed to eat fine but we were unaware that they need dried algae when we bought him they said to feed him flakes (but we dont go to that store any longer, they gave us several pieces of misinformation).
Thanks for the reply | |
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02-03-2008, 06:27 PM
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#4 (permalink)
| | Giant Squid
Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Miami, FL Age: 39
Posts: 4,549
 
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Sorry for your loss. _________ 9YR OLD 90G/55g custom sump/refug Mag18 Aquac 180skimmer 692w MH AC jr,yel&kole tang,midas&convict blenny,B&G chromies,Blk/yel fin chromie blackcap,nemo,neon goby,6line; Blastomussa Merleti,Acan ,BUBBLE,Torch,LTA, Acropora(2) Moon, assort zoas, yel& G star polyps, P&B ricordia, montiporas, cup&candy corals, xenias,B/G mush,flower ane(2), cherry red mussa, dusters,cleaning crew..  | 
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02-03-2008, 06:34 PM
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#5 (permalink)
| | Peppermint Shrimp
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 415
Karma: 175
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no prob. Unfortunately I relied on a bad LFS years ago and went through this same thing twice. The tangs starved to death because they weren't getting the nutrition they needed. If he's still with you get some marine algae as soon as you can and give it to him. If you don't have a LFS or they open late then try Petsmart or ( I can't believe I'm saying this) Petco. They should have dried seaweed bagged up in the fish section.
Always research a fish from multiple sources before you get it. While some people get lucky the sad fact of the matter is that 98% of LFS's are unreliable. They are only out to make a sale and they don't care how many animals they kill to do it.
Good luck, and always feel free to ask questions here. They'll always be answered.
P.S. You need at least 60 pounds more of live rock in that tank.And remember that the eel is going to grow so don't overstock you tank (eels are messy) and don't get anything that he'll eat. Always check compatibility before you get something. | |
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02-03-2008, 07:35 PM
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#6 (permalink)
| | Giant Squid
Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Meriden, Connecticut Age: 44
Posts: 3,951
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It may in fact have something to do with starvation and/or diet, however, with the type of fish that you have, you have to believe that the phosphate and nitrate levels have to be elevated due to the substantial amound of detritus and waste produced by these larger deficators.
I would be willing to bet that those variables combined with possible dissolved oxygen in the water could have posed a problem, especially since Tangs are the least hardy out of all the fish you have in your tank. Disease brought on as a result of stress of the Tang could also impact the situation.
At any rate, I am saddened about your loss! We as conscientious aquarists and hobbyists do not like to hear about animals dying or detrimental results, no matter how slight.
Don't let it get you down, learn and correct the event that just happened to lessen this in the future. _________ 125gal.w/Mag9.5 return(dual megaflow)>Mag7 pump Aqua Cev180skimmer.Wave2k Hamilton Reefstar(2)250watthqi(mh)pend.a Yellow, Naso Tang Red Lip Blenny Percula Clown Demoiselles Niger Trigger F. Wrasses Ceriantharia Orn.Shrimp and Stars Hermits Queen Conch asst. snails> Stars Zoos shrooms Montipora Brains Gorgonians Favia Turbinaria(large+small polyp) Acropora Xenia Tridacna (CroceaMaximaSquamosa) Leathers <35+75gal.reef tank as well> 
"IF THE PHONE DOESN'T RING...IT'S ME"  jb  | |
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02-03-2008, 11:33 PM
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#7 (permalink)
| | Giant Squid
Join Date: Sep 2007
Posts: 3,346
Karma: 4672
 
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Karma for your loss..... | |
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02-04-2008, 08:52 AM
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#8 (permalink)
| | Gnarly Old Codfish
Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Silverdale, Washington Age: 59
Posts: 4,788
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Sorry for loss.
Usually a very durable fish.
Supplemental algae a must...nori etc...
Will eat about anything, but needs the green stuff to survive. _________ AG "125," AquaC EV 180, 30 gal sump, "SCWD", 80 lbs LR, CoralSeaLife "Moonlite" Hood, PFO 250W HQI Mini-Pendant (SPS HQI 14000k bulb)
12 Gallon NanoCube - 24w stock PC 50/50 light "...nothing good ever happens fast in a reef tank, only bad things happen fast..."
- MIKE PALLETTA - (2008 Reef log) ("OmarD"/"Scott") | |
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02-04-2008, 10:19 AM
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#9 (permalink)
| | Gigas Clam
Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Quebec City
Posts: 894
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I hope you have better luck in future _________ 
55gl skimmerless, 80lbs live rock, DIY wavemaker running 3x MJ1200 with hydor deflector.
2 DIY fluidized reactors Carbon & ROWAphos
LIghts- 2x 50/50 atinics T10's , 2x life gro T10's ,
1x20,000K T12, 1x6,000K T10.
Fish-3
Coral-13. | |
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02-08-2008, 04:11 PM
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#10 (permalink)
| | Plankton
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 17
Karma: 1
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i HAD THE SAME THING HAPPEN TO MY SAILFIN HE WAS DOING GREAT THEN ONE DAY ALL OF A SUDDEN HE STARTED SWIMMING CRAZY AND IN A MATTER OF ABOUT 20 MIN HE WAS DEAD I WAS PISSED BECAUSE IT JUST HAPPEND OUT OF NO WERE I THOUGHT ONE OF MY CORALS MIGHT HAVE STUNG HIM. | |
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