Does stress from laying eggs kill clownfish?

Bastray · Aug 20, 2018

2 days ago my clownfish pair laid eggs for the first time that I have seen. This morning the female clownfish is dead. I've had the pair over 2 years and my parameters have been stable. Every other fish and Coral look normal. The only change I have seen is since my clowns started hosting my frogspawn it had black blotches on it. I figured it was sting marks from the Coral and the fish was eating and healthy looking otherwise. The male clownfish also has the same marks. It's not black ich for sure.

Since laying the eggs the female has been very aggressive, so I don't know if stressed killed her or she ticked of the wrong fish and that fish killed her. It happened overnight. Fish looked normal yesterday.

Params:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 10-15
Po4: .04
Alk: 9.6
Calcium: 478 (trying to slowly lower)
Temp: 79
Salinity: 35ppt

I have pics of her dead if anyone thinks that might help diagnose what is going on. I didn't want to be morbid and post pics of my dead fish right out of the gate!

redfishbluefish · Aug 20, 2018

I'd post the picture so the disease folks can have a peek..... @Humblefish , @melypr1985 , @4FordFamily , #reefsquad .

Humblefish · Aug 20, 2018

Did the body have any bruises or injuries? Clownfish do become very aggressive after laying eggs, and I'm wondering if possibly she lost a fight with a bigger fish.

Another possibility is the frogspawn sting. Although rare, it's not unheard of for a clownfish to succumb to coral stings. Sometimes even a natural host anemone will kill them if the vibes aren't right.

Bastray · Aug 20, 2018

Some of the top fins are a bit torn up because I found her this morning resting against an acan and I think it was starting to eat away at the fins. Also attached is a pic of her alive 2 days ago right after laying the eggs.

Lasse · Aug 20, 2018

To defend and protect their roe and territory can be very stressful for first timers. Stroke, more sensitivity to coral toxins and heart attack can likely happens in a situation like that.

Sincerely Lasse

Amoo · Aug 20, 2018

Fins don't decay in less than 12 hours.

If the fins were ripped from cleanup crew, that would be extremely odd as well as they will often times go after meaty parts first.

I would honestly say your fin observation may be your only clue as to what happened. It seems most likely somebody may have got too close and she picked a fight she couldn't win or just got unlucky. Out of curiosity, what else is in that tank?

Also the red marks on her side are those normal or are those fresh. Hard to tell after they pass.

Bastray · Aug 20, 2018

Has had marks on her side since hosting the frogspawn. Never really liked red before, but she is white and under blue light normally, so she usually just kinda looked blue. I always thought the marks looked grey in the tank. My male clown has the exact same coloration on its side.

MnFish1 · Aug 20, 2018

Bastray said:
Has had marks on her side since hosting the frogspawn. Never really liked red before, but she is white and under blue light normally, so she usually just kinda looked blue. I always thought the marks looked grey in the tank. My male clown has the exact same coloration on its side.

Can I ask a question where does this come from the clowb hosting a frog spawn or anemone. The anemone or coral since they are immobile are hosting the clown. On the topic clowns can get
Infections eggbound even when laying etc
There is no way to know but seemingly it is injury from a fight as @Amoo says