Urgent Orang Tail Damsel Missing

Hi, posting on my boyfriend's (yheartsp) behalf as he doesn't have internet access:

My orange tail damsel went missing this morning. The day before he was hiding at his own cave, breathing pretty fast. Looked lethargic.

The day before that he was eating like a pig and being a big bully as usual.

Could he be stung by an anemone or something?



Hope you guys can help! Thanks!

 

Can we get more info about your tank system and also water params? Do you have good surface agitation? Sounds like it may have been lack of O2.

 

Taken from his tank thread:

tank dimensions are 60 inch x 24 inch x 30 inch
and sump 48 inch x 18 inch x 16 inch

Tank equipments :
Light fixture and ballast are DIY, 2 x 250 w BLV 20000k MH and 2 x 54 w T5HO ( giesemann pure actinic and actinic plus )
Skimmer is also DIY using ehiem 3000 as the pump

The tank has 3 sources of circulation
1: 1320 GPH return pump ( ehiem 5000)
2 :koralia 4 powerhead ( 1200GPH )
3. chiller return ( 800GPH )

temperature control : 1/3 JP JBJ artica 250


But the Koralia has been substituted with a Vortech MP40w.

water parameters (as of 28/11/09)

Salinity 1.025
calcium 460ppm
Alkalinity 9dkh
pH 8.2
Magnesium 1350ppm
Nitrates 0.1ppm
Nitrites 0
Ammonia 0

He does not test for phosphates but the last time he tested it was close to zero.

 

How long have you had this aquarium running? the cycling process is critical to a new inhabitant. Has any new specimens been added recently to the aquarium? Do any other fish in your tank show signs of fast breathing? How many fish in the tank? Sometimes a large bio load can contribute to the fish mysteriously dying. sometimes it is normal that a fish may all of a sudden die due to disease within his own immune system which he shows no signs of. Or maybe your damsel suffered from the same thing that my six line wrasse did.. "HICD" held in captivity disease....lol I found him dry in the back of my system... look around for yours... he may not be in the water.. good luck

 

The aquarium has been up and running for nearly 4 months. Fishes were only added after ammonia and nitrite levels were 0.

Recent additions were a Long Nose Hawkfish and a Six Line Wrasse. No other fish showed signs of fast breathing.

There are 20 fishes but most grow to less than 5 inches, Only 4 or 5 grow beyond that.