Sudden Healthy Clownfish Death

accel · 09/24/2018, 10:21 AM

I have a 4-month old Clownfish who suddenly died around 2am. Six hours prior to that, she was perfectly fine and ate her favorite Brine shrimps -- along with other fishes (male Clownfish, three Pajama Cardinals, Yellow Watchman Goby, Yellow Tang, Lawnmower Blenny).

Last time I saw her she was snuggling fine with her Yellow and Rose Bubble tip (she has two). Then my wife saw her floating inverted on a rock like 6 inches away from the bubble tip.

I did a water change like 4 days ago prior to this accident. I inspected the clownfish. No icks. No signs of infestation. No rotting fins. No obvious blunt traumas. She has been with the other fishes for 4 months now. She is the aggressor and the boss of the tank.

I didn't test the water parameters except for the salinity. I figured if there's a problem in the water, all of my fishes should die as well. It's been 2 days and all of them are still alive and kicking.

The only thing I noticed upon her death was the temperature drop from 77F to 73F. The weather suddenly changed. But I had this incident happened before where the tank dropped to 68F. However, if this is really the root cause, then I expect all of the fishes should die as well.

I'm still at lost at what caused the death of a perfectly, strong Clownfish.

Uncle99 · 09/24/2018, 11:45 AM

Clown is hardy fish so temp likely no issue.
After months in the DT, fish can die due to attack or diease.
I have seen sleeping Clowns attacked and killed by crabs no less.
All you can do is watch carefully for any signs of distress in otters.

Kinetic · 09/24/2018, 12:47 PM

Just because the other fishes are alive doesn't mean the water parameters are OK.

A temp drop could have caused something else to die off that you can't see, and you could have had a spike in something like ammonia, nitrite, or nitrates.

Can't tell you anything else, but I would have tested anyway.

accel · 09/24/2018, 01:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kinetic

Just because the other fishes are alive doesn't mean the water parameters are OK.

A temp drop could have caused something else to die off that you can't see, and you could have had a spike in something like ammonia, nitrite, or nitrates.

Can't tell you anything else, but I would have tested anyway.

Well I'm not saying the water parameters are perfect or good. One of the things I'm trying to ask is why would one fish die because of bad water parameter but the rest do not? The fish had no signs of illness. There wasn't also any aggressive fish towards him.

Yes, something could die off with a temp drop. But the lingering question is why it only affected one fish? I will test later for the sake of sanity.

I guess my expectation is if the water is that really bad, I would see more dead fish.

Kinetic · 09/24/2018, 01:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by accel

Well I'm not saying the water parameters are perfect or good. One of the things I'm trying to ask is why would one fish die because of bad water parameter but the rest do not? The fish had no signs of illness. There wasn't also any aggressive fish towards him.

Yes, something could die off with a temp drop. But the lingering question is why it only affected one fish? I will test later for the sake of sanity.

I guess my expectation is if the water is that really bad, I would see more dead fish.

Your expectation is not very solid in my opinion. Not until you know all the variables, like water chemistry (which is the absolute easiest thing to know for certain).

accel · 09/24/2018, 02:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kinetic

Your expectation is not very solid in my opinion. Not until you know all the variables, like water chemistry (which is the absolute easiest thing to know for certain).

Fair enough. While I wait to get home, can you tell me what's a solid opinion then based on this scenario.

Kinetic · 09/24/2018, 02:05 PM

It's hard to know until you can rule out water parameters as the cause. If it is, just do huge water changes to minimize something that's out of wack.

MarinaP · 09/24/2018, 07:15 PM

Is this a 4 month old clown or did you have it for 4 months? If it is the former, i would assume it had internal problems due to poor rearing by the breeder or just bad luck.

OrionN · 09/26/2018, 04:39 AM

Do you have a sump? if not air stone? If neither of the above, possible hypoxemia at night.

09/24/2018, 10:21 AM	#1
accel Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2018 Posts: 110	Sudden Healthy Clownfish Death I have a 4-month old Clownfish who suddenly died around 2am. Six hours prior to that, she was perfectly fine and ate her favorite Brine shrimps -- along with other fishes (male Clownfish, three Pajama Cardinals, Yellow Watchman Goby, Yellow Tang, Lawnmower Blenny). Last time I saw her she was snuggling fine with her Yellow and Rose Bubble tip (she has two). Then my wife saw her floating inverted on a rock like 6 inches away from the bubble tip. I did a water change like 4 days ago prior to this accident. I inspected the clownfish. No icks. No signs of infestation. No rotting fins. No obvious blunt traumas. She has been with the other fishes for 4 months now. She is the aggressor and the boss of the tank. I didn't test the water parameters except for the salinity. I figured if there's a problem in the water, all of my fishes should die as well. It's been 2 days and all of them are still alive and kicking. The only thing I noticed upon her death was the temperature drop from 77F to 73F. The weather suddenly changed. But I had this incident happened before where the tank dropped to 68F. However, if this is really the root cause, then I expect all of the fishes should die as well. I'm still at lost at what caused the death of a perfectly, strong Clownfish.

09/24/2018, 07:15 PM	#8
MarinaP Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Northern VA Posts: 3,489	Is this a 4 month old clown or did you have it for 4 months? If it is the former, i would assume it had internal problems due to poor rearing by the breeder or just bad luck. __________________ Marina

09/26/2018, 04:39 AM	#9
OrionN Moved on Join Date: Apr 2000 Location: Coastal Texas Posts: 16,000	Do you have a sump? if not air stone? If neither of the above, possible hypoxemia at night. __________________ Minh My homepage is my album here at Reef Central Current Tank Info: Reboot 320 anemones reef. Angels: Yellow Chest Regal(2), Flame (2). Copperband But. Tangs: Yellow, Purple. Wrasse: about 20 wrasses various species. Anemones: Giantea X4 (Breen, Blue, Purple and Multicolors), Haddoni X1 Red, Magnifica X1 Purpletip

09/24/2018, 11:45 AM	#2
Uncle99 Crab Free Zone Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 2,906	Clown is hardy fish so temp likely no issue. After months in the DT, fish can die due to attack or diease. I have seen sleeping Clowns attacked and killed by crabs no less. All you can do is watch carefully for any signs of distress in otters.

09/24/2018, 12:47 PM	#3
Kinetic Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: SF Bay Area Posts: 7,230	Just because the other fishes are alive doesn't mean the water parameters are OK. A temp drop could have caused something else to die off that you can't see, and you could have had a spike in something like ammonia, nitrite, or nitrates. Can't tell you anything else, but I would have tested anyway.

09/24/2018, 02:05 PM	#7
Kinetic Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: SF Bay Area Posts: 7,230	It's hard to know until you can rule out water parameters as the cause. If it is, just do huge water changes to minimize something that's out of wack.