Dying blue sapphire damsel??!!

Nem0 · Mar 4, 2019

I came home from classes and saw that my blue sapphire damsel was lying in the back of the tank on the sand. it has a torn fin and a red spot (where i presume a fish bit her). I have a clownfish and a firefish goby. the damsel has been in the tank for half a week, eating fine and has her own hidey hole. it comes out for feeding and sometimes just to swim in the water column and i haven't seen any aggression from the clownfish, hermit crabs or firefish to it.

I took her out and isolated her, but its not doing well. lying on its side and breathing heavy...looks like its about to die

anything i can do at this point except wait and keep it isolated? also- the fish is normally a brilliant navy blue/black, it looks gray and white now.

water parameters are fine, and the other 2 fish are healthy. i don't think its anything to do with water quality, must be aggression.

K-Philly · Mar 4, 2019

Nem0 said:
I came home from classes and saw that my blue sapphire damsel was lying in the back of the tank on the sand. it has a torn fin and a red spot (where i presume a fish bit her). I have a clownfish and a firefish goby. the damsel has been in the tank for half a week, eating fine and has her own hidey hole. it comes out for feeding and sometimes just to swim in the water column and i haven't seen any aggression from the clownfish, hermit crabs or firefish to it.

I took her out and isolated her, but its not doing well. lying on its side and breathing heavy...looks like its about to die anything i can do at this point except wait and keep it isolated? also- the fish is normally a brilliant navy blue/black, it looks gray and white now.

water parameters are fine, and the other 2 fish are healthy. i don't think its anything to do with water quality, must be aggression.

You could be right about the aggression, can you post a picture?

Katrina71 · Mar 4, 2019

I would agree. Probably clown being territorial.

Nem0 · Mar 4, 2019

the blue sapphire damsel died

i think it must have been the clown but i've seen them interact this week with no issues whatsoever, even the 2 swimming together! the clown is about 1.5in, and the blue 1 in. the damsel has a small hole that the clown can't fit into that she likes to hide in during the day but i guess it must have been aggression... i really liked having a clown and damsel together, any ideas on how to reduce possible aggression for the future? get similar sized fish?

Katrina71 · Mar 4, 2019

I'm so sorry

Katrina71 · Mar 4, 2019

We have a pair of Clowns with a blue velvet damsel. The clowns were added after. They were a surprise gift for my son from a friend. 1.5 years later...no aggression. I understand this could change at any time.

K-Philly · Mar 4, 2019

Nem0 said:
the blue sapphire damsel died i think it must have been the clown but i've seen them interact this week with no issues whatsoever, even the 2 swimming together! the clown is about 1.5in, and the blue 1 in. the damsel has a small hole that the clown can't fit into that she likes to hide in during the day but i guess it must have been aggression... i really liked having a clown and damsel together, any ideas on how to reduce possible aggression for the future? get similar sized fish?

I am sorry as well, and I am terribly sorry that I did not get to you sooner to try and help. As far as aggression, similar size introductions do help. Space availability does as well. Sometimes with aggression, you can do everything right and it still just won't work for your particular system. If you watch the documentary series "Blue Planet 2," it is on Netflix I believe, you will begin to understand how much more we are still learning about marine life. You will also get to see that fish actually do have a form of verbal language, similar to those of whales. Clownfish are supposedly known as "the chattiest fish of the sea." It is quite interesting.

What happened to your Damsel also just proves how different fish can be within a species as well. From my knowledge, Damsels are those tough guys on the block that can take a beating and are usually aggressive. Which is why they are usually the choice of fish to be used in a fish-in cycle. So, it is somewhat surprising that no injuries were reported of the clownfish. I hate you lost your friend, but you tried by reaching out! That matters!