[cath]

I tried taking a picture of my wrasse, but he's just too fast.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, my wrasse has been attacking (for lack of a better word) the surface of the water. Not lots and lots, just intermittantly. Just started doing this about 2 weeks ago.

Tonight my sister noticed that his tail fin looks ragged. Like something chomped at it. And the dorsal fin looks like it's a lighter color close to his head. The only other critters are the tomato clown, a peppermint shrimp or 2 (who knows, I only see one, but...), some snails and one very old hermit. Old = since I've had the tank....about 2 years. Also a serpant sea star, and 2 green lettuce nudi's.

What say ye?

 

[Guest]

fin rot maybe?
i know that is common in freshwater is it in salt as well?

 

[cath]

Uh oh...I don't know. Maybe someone else will have some ideas.

Thanks for your input, mnreefman. How do you treat fin rot, anyway?

 

[thefatman]

how are nitrates cath? i know very high nitrates can burn fins.

but i would think it would affect more than just the tail fin, and more than just the wrasse

 

[Guest]

fin rot is caused by a bacteria. i believe there is a chemical you can use. is the fish scraping against any rocks cath?

 

[cath]

Hmm...not that I know of MN...there is plenty of room in the tank. Do you mean scraping on purpose (like itching) or by accident?

 

[Guest]

on purpose

 

[Alice]

Have you checked your pH and alk? If those are out of whack they can affect the fish's fins (and health). What I see happen a lot isn't a dramatic rise or drop in pH just a slow change (usually a decrease) that allows the animals in the tank to adjust to a certain degree so your corals may not seem affected right now. But once it gets to a certain point, they can't adapt anymore.

I know you've done a couple of water changes lately, so it shouldn't be an issue, but it's something to check.

Alice

 

[cath]

thanks for the suggestions, everyone

 

[Junkzoo]

Cath,,,,the tail is:
shredded
bite marks
or torn
falling away-rot?

mebbe the clown,,,
test your water anyway,,,sumpthin could be off,,

 

[cath]

closest way to describe the tail is shredded.
pH = 8, and Ammonia, nitrites and nitrates are all zero.

mnreefman, I haven't seen Mr. Spot rubbing against any corals.

BTW..going up to the surface seems only to happen at night ...after 10:30 or so. Do you think he's tellin' me to turn off the lights?

 

[Guest]

have you noticed any aggression from the clown?

 

[Casey]

I would also make sure he gets some selcon into his system to help him heal.

 

[Junkzoo]

hmmm, might look at the clown as a problem,(if your water params are ok)
screwy things can/could happen ,
Scott(pirate) had a mystery death thing going on in his tank , til his wife said, put the clown in the sump,,,problem gone!
he could not keep a fish overnite til he did this, we all scratched our bony heads , trying to figger this one out.
(he almost got out of the hobby over this)
clown was FINE with any new fish during daylite hrs.
new fish DOA in the morning,,,,,
no signs of any problem/harassment just dead!
it all ended after the clown was removed, and sent back to the LFS
all is well now,,,
just to add my input,,,,

 

[Spanky]

It's the tomato Cath. As soon as you turn the lights out. That wrasse is looking for a way out of there.

 

[Junkzoo]

It's the tomato Cath. As soon as you turn the lights out. That wrasse is looking for a way out of there.

Yup, pretty much what i was thinking too,,,,,

 

[Spanky]

Just as innocent as pie when Mom's watching, the second the lights go out - she's out hanging on the back of a Harley!

 

[cath]

Ha! soo...Harley's bring you out, Jerel!


VRrrrrrroooooooooooomm... cath's Tomato clown bein' bad!

 

[Junkzoo]

Just a innocent as pie when Mom's watching, the second the lights go out - she's out hanging on the back of a Harley!

Great! where were you when we were trying to figger out Pirate's(Scott) problem?

 

[Spanky]

Somewhere there's someone with this as their sig >

Clowns are just damsels in pretty pajamas!