damsels

bottomfeeder · 03-10-2004, 07:39 AM

Hi everyone,

i did some maintance work on my tank (cleaned the filter) I also made my overhead filtration blow out bubbles. I am still in the cycling stage. I have two yellow tailed damsels. They reacted badly to the new input. I noticed that they began to change colour a bit. I thought it may be white spot..but after looking at photo, thats not the problem. I also began to have brown spots over the bottom of the tank.

I changed the system back to the way it was and vacumed the bottom. They seem to be alright now. Do they change colour when stressed?

Tony

candian bacon · 03-10-2004, 08:50 AM

Hello Tony

Many marine fish change colour when stresed. its there way of camoflauge. i woundent worry about it to much. they will return back to that awsome bright blue!

As for the brown spots on the tank. That is a form of algea. once your tank cycles the algea will turn to a green hair type. thats when you invest in some snails and hermit crabs to keep things clean.

WilyGuy · 03-10-2004, 11:05 AM

bottomfeeder,

I would seriously give consideration to whether you want damsels in your final tank. I, probably like you, wanted SOMETHING to swim around in my tank. I made the mistake of purchasing a yellow tail blue damsel. hopefully the fact that you have 2 is going to keep you in better check, but mine owned the tank.

The rascal beat up and killed the first 2 fish I put in and was working on a clownfish that was bigger than him. The final straw was when he came over and tail slapped a snail that was in the corner of the tank. he HAD TO GO.

After removing ALL the LR in my tank, I was finally able to net him. I managed to stress the clownfish in the process and hopefully he will recover. (my thought was he was going to die sooner at the hands of the damsel).

I am now firmly in the don't cycle with damsels camp. It is cruel to them and to anything you add after. They may be fine after other fish are in there for a while, but not to start. This raises the question of how do I test my tank's readiness without spending a fortune on something less aggressive?

WG

bottomfeeder · 03-10-2004, 01:18 PM

Thanks Canadian & WG, It was suggested to me to use the damsels. i didnt have the experiance to know about the aggressivness etc. I am putting in some live rock and algie in tommorow and im going to offer them back to the shop. The money i paid for them was worth the knowledge that has been gained. (and i dont want to be cruel to the fish).....what would you guys suggest the first specimens to put in?

Bottomfeeder

Phishnoob · 03-10-2004, 01:34 PM

I am at three months on my LR and got an email to start with Ocellarus. Like an idiot I started with a Mandarin fish about a month ago that died even though I have copepods aplenty, so I am really gunshy now. I had zero ammonia or nitrites and almost no Nitrates with pH and salinity correct and thought it was okay.

The advice given to me was a mated pair of the clowns then a month of downtime then the tang.

I am in the same boat as you so hopefully some of our pros will ring in with fish recommendations that will live for us new folks. The books and websites all talk about compatibility with other species but seem to miss comments on hardiness. I am looking for something that can live like a damsel but not be a big meany.

Phishnoob

candian bacon · 03-10-2004, 01:39 PM

i have 2 yellow tail damsels in my tank. i have had some that are very agressive and some that get along fine with other fish. maybe they will calm down once you have live rock in your tank? thats the chance you have to take.

As for fish...

My next fish will be a clown or two. i think almost anyone visions a clown fish when you tell them you have a salt water tank.

If your going to add live rock to your tank. i would hold off on any thing else. Unless you are certain that the rock has been fully cured. Otherwise you risk high levels as the living matter on the rocks dies off in your tank.

take it slow....

mtaqua · 03-10-2004, 01:56 PM

try a Garibaldi Damsel...

StellaMN · 03-10-2004, 05:50 PM

I can attest to the evil nature of ****-sels. I had a yellow tail in my tank--I've had him since my first day with saltwater. It took me several hours and a complete tear down of my tank to get him out after he killed a six line wrasse and a fairy wrasse.

He now resides in my six gallon eclipse with my mantis shrimp--and the mantis shrimp won't mess with him. (Anyone getting tired of my repetition of this story...??)

Jodi

tims · 03-10-2004, 06:12 PM

howdy bottomfeeder.

question is are you going to have LRFO live rock fish only or corals in the tank?
either way get the damsels out.. get all the LR you want now into the tank and wait a while .. test your levels and start thinking about what you want to have..the browning that is happeneing is a normal part of the cycling of your tank..i would not "start" a tank with any fish..too stressfull on them and sorta mean...
i started mine with just LR and a little stress- zyme..

HTH

OodleyBoodely · 03-10-2004, 10:59 PM

Tony, I know it's hard advice to take, but you'll have much better success with the fish if you wait until all your rock is in and well cycled. If you are planning on corals, I would even suggest adding some of your hardier coral specimens (after full cycling is over) before adding fish to the tank. It seems to me (from my own experiences and the posts of other newbies) that the fish are actually much more delicate in new tanks than many corals. Even after the tank is fully cycled, it is still raw and new and many fish just can't handle it. They need a more mature system where many of the biological cycles (beyond intitial cycling) have already been established. This maturing can take 6months to a year! That doesn't mean you can't add fish before then, it just means the ones you do add need to be the hardiest species and the healthiest specimens possible. And going slowly will give them a greater chance at surviving. GL

bottomfeeder · 03-11-2004, 01:29 AM

Thanks everyone for the help. I will take the suggestions on ...patience...patience...patience

bottomfeeder

matpollom · 03-11-2004, 02:24 AM

Take some advise........
Get rid of those damsels!!!!!!!! I bought one two years ago (blue w/ yellow stripe) it was the worst mistake I ever made!!!!!
It was 1" when I bought it and it grew to almost 6"!!!! It was extremely territorial and just generally mean as HELL!!!! The **** thing would even attack new corals I added to my tank! I finally just gave it to my LFS and it was so bad I think the had to put it in an empty tank to get it to stop attacking things!! Trust me get rid of those damsels and never get another one again!!!!!!!!!!