Fish inside rocks

[Kimmi2413]

New to the hobby and just wondering what would happen if a fish died inside my rocks. I have a fish that stays hiding inside the rocks and haven’t seen it in a few days so guessing it died?

 

[K. Steven]

An adequate CUC and bacteria take care of it.

 

[nautical_nathaniel]

New to the hobby and just wondering what would happen if a fish died inside my rocks. I have a fish that stays hiding inside the rocks and haven’t seen it in a few days so guessing it died?

Most likely if it dies inside the rock, your cleanup crew, especially hermit crabs, consume the body. The alternative is that it breaks down and causes a significant nutrient spike but that also depends on the size of the fish.

 

[Reefing Madness]

If he died in the rocks, more than likely the hidden critters such as bristle worms would clean him up and you'd not find him even if you moved your rocks around.

 

[Halal Hotdog]

Also don't be surprised if it is not dead. I have read countless threads where people were braking down their 5+ year tanks and they discover a fish still alive and thriving that they haven't seen in years. Different species of fish like their isolation.

 

[Kimmi2413]

I have a small Royal Gramma Basslet. Doesn’t even come out to eat so wasn’t really sure if it died or not. Tried blowing the rocks with a power head to see if it came out but that didn’t work just made my tank a bit cloudy

 

[Jesterrace]

This is where the hermit crabs shine. If the fish is alive, they will leave it alone. If it is dead or near death they will find it and drag it out into the open for consumption, thereby making it very easy to remove. My red hermits provided this service twice. Once when my Green Mandarin died (Surprise, Surprise, it wouldn't eat), and once when my purple firefish that was bullied and had a run in with an aiptasia 'nem. I would've never found either of them in my rock work without my hermits. Sucks that they died, but it would've been far worse to have an ammonia spike that killed the living stuff in my tank.

 

[Kimmi2413]

This is where the hermit crabs shine. If the fish is alive, they will leave it alone. If it is dead or near death they will find it and drag it out into the open for consumption, thereby making it very easy to remove. My red hermits provided this service twice. Once when my Green Mandarin died (Surprise, Surprise, it wouldn't eat), and once when my purple firefish that was bullied and had a run in with an aiptasia 'nem. I would've never found either of them in my rock work without my hermits. Sucks that they died, but it would've been far worse to have an ammonia spike that killed the living stuff in my tank.

Thanks I don’t have any of those crabs but will get some