Goby and blenny dead

[JardaK]

Hello,
Last month I got a gobiodon Okinawae he got missing after few days. At Saturday I bought nice salarias fasciatus and today I found him dead on sandbed, his back was white and no bite marks. There is filefish and two skunk shrimps in the tank, some soft corals and few lps, snails, worms, small brittlestars, aiptasia and ball anemones. Any thoughts from expert reefers what can be killing gobies in rockwork? Shrimps are there for over a month filefish since Christmas.

Salinity 35ppt, NO3 between 10 and 25, po4 0 all other parameters ok.

 

[Big G]

Hello,
Last month I got a gobiodon Okinawae he got missing after few days. At Saturday I bought nice salarias fasciatus and today I found him dead on sandbed, his back was white and no bite marks. There is filefish and two skunk shrimps in the tank, some soft corals and few lps, snails, worms, small brittlestars, aiptasia and ball anemones. Any thoughts from expert reefers what can be killing gobies in rockwork? Shrimps are there for over a month filefish since Christmas.

Salinity 35ppt, NO3 between 10 and 25, po4 0 all other parameters ok.

Parasites are the usual cause of most fish deaths. Did you take any pictures and or give the fish a freshwater dip to check for flukes?

 

[JardaK]

Parasites are the usual cause of most fish deaths. Did you take any pictures and or give the fish a freshwater dip to check for flukes?

Sadly I didn't get any pictures. No flukes or anything else could be seen on the fish prior to disappearance, after some thoughts could it be done by bristle worm? Prior to adding filefish I have seen one maybe 10cm long.

 

[Big G]

One fish, may be due to run in with bristleworm(s), but two? Possible but unlikely.

 

[GoldeneyeRet]

Parasites, ammonia or acclimation issues would be my first suspects. These fish can be vulnerable to predation, but I dont see anything on you stocklist that looks suspect. Did you use florida gulf rock? perhaps a mantis or something....

 

[JardaK]

Rocks were from established tanks, no mantis shrimp or anything else have been seen there before. Thinking about getting full water test to rule out some heavy metal contamination.

 

[GoldeneyeRet]

Rocks were from established tanks, no mantis shrimp or anything else have been seen there before. Thinking about getting full water test to rule out some heavy metal contamination.

I would suspect disease first. Acclimation second. Rule those out first.
Heavy metals would affect the shrimp and coral long before the fish.

Good luck

 

[Tamberav]

A predator would have ate it, at least part of it imo. Any time a crab or mantis got a fish of mine, they took it to eat it and they did not give it up easily.

 

[Terri Caton]

Don't know if this was said before but you can always add beneficial bacteria when you add fish. Gives you more of a buffer zone.