Basslet acting in a new way

[Abiodork]

I put a black cap basslet in my 13.5 gallon tank 6 weeks ago. I’ve been feeding it nano reef frenzy with forceps 2x daily and it has always rushed to grab the food. The last two days it’s been staying close to it’s cave and comes out to feed, but only approaches then goes kind of still and opens its mouth really wide without taking the food.

Additional tank context: Over the course of the past two months, I’ve incrementally added a handful of inverts (various snails and a blue leg hermit - I also have a sizeable spaghetti worm that’s take up residence), a young common clown, and starting about two weeks ago a couple of mushroom coral, a leather toadstool, and three zoa frags. Water parameters are still stabilizing, but nothing too alarming. The clown and the basslet seem to be coexisting just fine - no observed aggression even during feeding.

I don’t see spots that would indicate ich but I know there’s an entire host of crap that can cause behavior changes in fish. I dipped and rinsed all of my corals per the insert. The clown isn’t acting weird. No new inverts for the past two weeks. But everything is so new - it could be anything.

Anyone have experience the wide open mouth “screaming at me” thing?

 

[vetteguy53081]

I put a black cap basslet in my 13.5 gallon tank 6 weeks ago. I’ve been feeding it nano reef frenzy with forceps 2x daily and it has always rushed to grab the food. The last two days it’s been staying close to it’s cave and comes out to feed, but only approaches then goes kind of still and opens its mouth really wide without taking the food.

Additional tank context: Over the course of the past two months, I’ve incrementally added a handful of inverts (various snails and a blue leg hermit - I also have a sizeable spaghetti worm that’s take up residence), a young common clown, and starting about two weeks ago a couple of mushroom coral, a leather toadstool, and three zoa frags. Water parameters are still stabilizing, but nothing too alarming. The clown and the basslet seem to be coexisting just fine - no observed aggression even during feeding.

I don’t see spots that would indicate ich but I know there’s an entire host of crap that can cause behavior changes in fish. I dipped and rinsed all of my corals per the insert. The clown isn’t acting weird. No new inverts for the past two weeks. But everything is so new - it could be anything.

Anyone have experience the wide open mouth “screaming at me” thing?

An indicator of yawning associated with Gill flukes as well as behaviors mention. Treatment will be Prazi Pro. To be safe , dose at 85% of recommended and apply initial dosage known as an interval for 8 days, do a water change and do one more 8 day dose interval
Use air stone with prazi as it does reduce both oxygen and appetite

 

[Sharkbait19]

Does it only open the mouth in response to the tongs or periodically throughout the day?
Just to the tongs could be an indication it feels threatened and is trying to scare it off, even if it took food fine before.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

+1 on it possibly being gill flukes. That species is prone to them, and the timing is about right for them to show up on this fish. Prazipro with good aeration (not just circulation), twice, 8 days apart would be my suggestion.

Jay

 

[Abiodork]

Thanks all. I have some Praziprole on hand and will begin researching dosing for this particular tank.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Thanks all. I have some Praziprole on hand and will begin researching dosing for this particular tank.

If you dose that, you’ll want to remove carbon filtration add an airstone and then dose it 8 days apart, with a 25% water change before the second dose.

Jay

 

[Abiodork]

Thanks for giving me ideas about what to look for! After another week of observation it seems like the behavior may have been due to aggression rather than illness. I started distracting the clown during feeding time by spreading pellets on the surface and then hand-feeding the basslet at the bottom of the tank. The “screaming” mouth phenomenon seems to be subsiding. Fingers crossed for a happy ending!