Anthias dying one by one

[anthonys51]

Originally Posted by running scott

This is in a 160 gallon tank. Only the males would die one at a time.


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Ok then it's not tank size. What type of anthias was it. Some types you should only have 1 male to a tank


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[running scott]

lyretails, when one male died, the next most dominant female became male. Then he would act the same way and die until I'm left with one female. She is staying female, and doing great.

[anthonys51]

Originally Posted by running scott

lyretails, when one male died, the next most dominant female became male. Then he would act the same way and die until I'm left with one female. She is staying female, and doing great.

Only 1 male lyertail to a tank. I bought 1 male and 3 females. 2 of the females died shortly. I then added 6 females to the mix 2 years later and 6 months later they are all alive. I also feed them a lot , 3 times a day. With that many fish you need to make sure they are all eating. You might have your makes dying because it's wasting too much energy trying to be dominant and not getting enough food.


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[shaginwagon13]

Originally Posted by Tripod1404

Yep this was also my case. No wounds, no aggression or bullying. At most there was flashing between the trio, but there wasn't any physical contact between the fish even than. Plus no fish went into hiding due to that.

In my case the progression was like this;

1- All anthias acted normal, was eating and breathing at normal rates and was swimming in the open.

2- One anthias started to hide more than usual, I still came out to eat and spent some time with the other anthias in the open.

3- Anthias that started to hide also started to act oddly. It would still come out and eat but It would also got spooked for no apparent reason. For instance, while hiding it would dart out from the cave at full speed, hitting the glass or rocks and breathing at a super high rate. Then it would calm down and return to the cave and breathing rate would drip to normal levels.

4- Hiding anthias lost interest in food. The small amount of food that it shows interest is not eaten and spitted out. Odd behaviors were becoming more and more frequent with fish darting around the tank for minutes in some cases as if it is being chased by something.

5- Hiding anthias stopped eating completely. It seemed to be in a constant state of confusion. Either darting around or always being in an alert state (looking around and acting from inside the cave as if there is something out there ). When light are dimmer it seemed calmer.

6- Anthias died. All my anthias that progressed this way died in 2-3 days. Most died during the night but one fish that died during the day was constantly darting around and it eventually started to lose its balance and was just swimming aimlessly until death.

You know symptoms of cyanide poisoning in humans include confusion, bizarre behavior, seizures, vertigo and hallucinations. These mostly result from the damage to the nervous system since cyanide is a neurotoxin. Its hard to compare human symptoms to fish behavior but I was able to see some similarities to it.

Exact same thing happened to me to all 4 of my Bartless Anthias. Lost the last one this week I found it floating. Absolutely no idea why.

[Tripod1404]

Originally Posted by shaginwagon13

Exact same thing happened to me to all 4 of my Bartless Anthias. Lost the last one this week I found it floating. Absolutely no idea why.

I assumed it was cyanide poisoning. Several weeks later I got another batch. They all are doing very well for 6 months or so.

[shaginwagon13]

Originally Posted by Tripod1404

I assumed it was cyanide poisoning. Several weeks later I got another batch. They all are doing very well for 6 months or so. I u

That's what I was thinking also.... I asked the store and they said it wasn't.. but anything can happen when shipments come from countries with less strict catching practices.

[ca1ore]

I bought six bartletts week before last and have only one left. Same progression as noted, one by one. I tried treating with antibiotic after the third one died, but it made no difference. Very strange.

[ca1ore]

Appears, in my case, to be either uronema or marine tuberculosis.

[shaginwagon13]

Originally Posted by ca1ore

Appears, in my case, to be either uronema or marine tuberculosis.

How did you determine that?

[ca1ore]

Body discoloration and ulceration. I don't know for sure, of course, but it certainly appears to be U.

[shaginwagon13]

Originally Posted by ca1ore

Body discoloration and ulceration. I don't know for sure, of course, but it certainly appears to be U.

Was this discolouration after death? The one I was able to find floating in the tank was almost all white. I’m not sure if that is a sign of anything or that’s from being dead for a period of time.

[ca1ore]

No they mostly started to show ulcerations just behind the gills; which got progressively worse until the fish dies.

[Tripod1404]

Originally Posted by ca1ore

No they mostly started to show ulcerations just behind the gills; which got progressively worse until the fish dies.

It might be cyanide if it is around the gills. Cynide cause ulceration.

https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/ershdb/eme..._29750037.html

[ca1ore]

Yes, you are right - it certainly could be.

[WDKegge]

Just wanted to chime in on this thread.

Have a trio lyretail anthias for close to 4 months.

Last month I noticed the smallest stop really eating, would put food in its mouth then spit it out. It eventually disappeared. Fast forward to today and came home to the 2nd smallest dead on the bottom of the tank.

Never saw any aggressive behavior from any of my fish or between the anthias. None of the fish showed any signs of parasites or diseases prior and were all swimming and breathing fine with great colors. The last one I have (male) looks and is swimming fine and eating.

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[gavij012379]

I ordered 5 lyreltail anthias. Instead got 3 dispar and 1 male and 1 female lyreltail. The 3 dispar were a little skittish and died within a few days. The male and female were doing okay for about 2 months when the male died for no apparent reason (It was 4 inches plus body wise so was probably fully grown). The female was doing okay for about 3 weeks when I ordered 4 more lyreltail anthias. The existing anthia didn't bother the new arrivals even though they were smaller but they were kinda skittish staying at the bottom below an overhang. A few days later they started dying one after the other and were gone within the week. The old anthia was doing okay but even this one died a few days after the last one. This is the first time I got anthias but looks like they are finicky. I was thinking of getting 5-6 dispar and trying again but after reading this and my experience I am thinking of steering away from them. They are beautiful and adds a nice color though and sure would love to see them school around. The 4 green chromis I have swim together which I like. I should probably just add 5 more of them.

[Sk8r]

For better help, can you provide tank size, age, shape and something about your water parameters?

[gavij012379]

Originally Posted by Sk8r

For better help, can you provide tank size, age, shape and something about your water parameters?

Mine was in a 6 feet 180 gallon. The tank has been running for around 8 months. Water parameter: SG 1.026, Temp 80F, Alk 10 dKH, Ca 460 ppm. All my parameters were pretty high. I am in the process of reducing all those. Most of the other fishes were moved from the other tank and are doing okay. I bit the bullet again and got some resplendent anthias just today. Keeping my fingers crossed they will be fine.