Clownfish died

[ElectrumGuy]

Hey guys,

Out of nowhere, one of my clownfish died (I had 2, still have 1).

My stats are:

Tank Size: 125G with 29g sump
Nitrate: 2 ppm
Nitrite: 0
Ammonia: 0
Temp: 76.7~78


Here is a picture of the corpse of my clown fish: http://imgur.com/a/mID1T



It seemed fine, the only thing was yesterday it began hiding in a cave and this morning I found it dead.

The only thing I can think of was 2 days ago, my HVAC system broke and my tank temperature dropped to 74.8. It never dropped below that and I got it back up to 76 within a few hours. Any ideas?


PS: I do plan to do a large water change in the next day or so just to be safe.

 

[Reeferdood]

Sorry about the loss of the clown. Fish will just sometimes expire without any reason whatsoever. The temp might have been the culprit but if it is only a single fatality it is hard to pinpoint it on any one thing.

 

[ElectrumGuy]

Sorry about the loss of the clown. Fish will just sometimes expire without any reason whatsoever. The temp might have been the culprit but if it is only a single fatality it is hard to pinpoint it on any one thing.

I'll do a large water change in the next few days just to be safe.

Do you think it would be OK with I got another Ocellaris clown fish for this one to pair with AND another pair of different (farm raised) clown fish? Its a 6 foot tank.

 

[Reeferdood]

Mixing clowns can have disastrous results for some...

 

[evan-beachouse-45]

I'll do a large water change in the next few days just to be safe.

Do you think it would be OK with I got another Ocellaris clown fish for this one to pair with AND another pair of different (farm raised) clown fish? Its a 6 foot tank.

You can definetly pair another guy with the already existing one and I have seen success with multiple pairs in large tanks, they tend to keep their territory

 

[evan-beachouse-45]

You can definetly pair another guy with the already existing one and I have seen success with multiple pairs in large tanks, they tend to keep their territory

But it can be disastrous as well.

 

[dbl]

Sorry for the lost clown. As far as adding another, I would highly suggest getting one noticeably smaller than your remaining clown, especially if your surviving clown was the female. As to adding additional pairs, as others said, it's hit or miss.

 

[ElectrumGuy]

Sorry for the lost clown. As far as adding another, I would highly suggest getting one noticeably smaller than your remaining clown, especially if your surviving clown was the female. As to adding additional pairs, as others said, it's hit or miss.

Tank has been up and running for about 10 months. Clowns were the first thing I added so 9 months without issues.

 

[USMC 4 LIFE]

The dead clownfish seems to have ripped fins. Had you notice any aggression between your two clowns before? Does your other clown have ripped fins?

 

[ElectrumGuy]

The dead clownfish seems to have ripped fins. Had you notice any aggression between your two clowns before? Does your other clown have ripped fins?

Other clown is fine. I only have a couple of things in my tank right now:

1. Some hermit crabs
2. Snails
3. Diamond back goby
4. Watchman goby + pistol shrimp
5. Another clown fish

The hermit crabs were all over it so I would be willing to bet this damage was postmortem.

 

[melypr1985]

How long have you had this clown and did you QT it or any of your other fish?

 

[ElectrumGuy]

How long have you had this clown and did you QT it or any of your other fish?

About 8 months. It was my first addition to the tank. Yes, I quarantine my fish.

 

[melypr1985]

About 8 months. It was my first addition to the tank. Yes, I quarantine my fish.

Alright. It could have simply been like the others have stated ammonia spike or lack of oxygen. It does happen from time to time unfortunately. Just keep an eye on the other fish for the time being.

 

[ahiggins]

I had a similar experience. I bought a normal and a snowflake. The snowflake bullied the other to death. She's crazy! Nips me all the time. She's still alive. Sometimes I wonder if the "bullied" one can't take all the abuse. I know it's how they establish dominance but if he was bullied, really anything could have taken him out.

 

[Thatoneduder]

This just happened to me. Came home today and found my snowflake clown dead. I recently added a yellow watchman goby and pistol shrimp pair and I think the pistol shrimp could have caused my rocks to move crushing the snowflake. Not sure how it happened but I know the pistol shrimp was hovering over/ probably eating the corpse. Not sure if a similar situation could have happened with you but it's a possibility.