New green BTA, dead ocellaris.. What happened..

[obelix]

So I bought a green BTA from Budsreef on friday.. Came home put it in the corner of the aquarim that the two ocellaris clowns float about in.. Tank is 8x2x2.. Next morning, fed everone, went to a pool party at a few lesbians my wife works with, came home and found one of my clowns heads (didn't find the rest) resting on the foot of the green BTA. Other tank mates would be 250 small blue legs, 1 sea urchan, 3 coral banded shrimp, 1 red coris wrass 7", 1 yellow tang 7", 1 blue hippo 7", 1 nigger trigger 2", 1 small naso 4", 7 small green chromis, 2 small bluefin damsels, 3 small lemon drop damsels, 1 small domino, 2 diamond gobies, 1 bullet goby, 1 scooter blenny.. The only thing other than the BTA that is new is the 4x250wx8ft MH lights that I added last tuesday. I guess the question would be, what killed the clown and cut him in two then put him next to the foot of my new BTA.. I'm clueless as I thought nothing I have done lately should have killed it.. Anyone have any theories as to what may have happened.

 

[obelix]

Levels good as far as I know.. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, 0 nitrates, 1.022 SG, 82deg, 360 cal, 14dkh alk.. ph 8.5

 

[linda lee]

obelix;206821 wrote: Levels good as far as I know.. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, 0 nitrates, 1.022 SG, 82deg, 360 cal, 14dkh alk.. ph 8.5

How old is your system? When I saw http://www.atlantareefclub.org/forums/showthread.php?t=18236">this thread</a>, I got the impression everything was reasonably new?

Over what span of time did you add all that livestock? I would not have added an anemone until the tank was established for at least 6 months. And I would have introduced fish/inverts slowly over a lengthy period of time.

 

[obelix]

Tank was started in march, BUT, I really don't think the anemone ate the clown as it was in a very violent death, didn't think the anemone had the strength to tear the head off of a clown in a single day and spit it out. I am having a theory, I think it's the wrasse, Think i'm not feeding him enough, the more I think about it, the more it sees like he has been giving me signs, when I put stuff in the tank he eats is verociously, and today i chopped up a raw shrimp and threw it in there and he ate the whole thing very violently.. Think I need to start putting bigger and more fleshy meat in there for him..

 

[linda lee]

What do you have in the way of powerheads or intakes? Have you checked those?

 

[obelix]

no power heads.. and the clown couldn't fit in through the overflow, not to mension, what would be the chance that it landed 1 cm from the foot of the anemone..

 

[linda lee]

I doubt the GBTA is the culprit. I'd be more suspect of the coris wrasse, especially if it's truly 7". These fish have a very high metabolism and require frequent feedings and they eat just about everything.

http://www.marinecenter.com/fish/wrassealsoseehogfish/redcoriswrasseadult/">"This fish feeds on a wide array of invertebrates, including snails, sand-dwelling bivalves, hermit crabs, crabs, chitons, shrimp, isopods, amphipods and sea urchins."</a></em>

Your clowns may have normally kept their distance from the wrasse, but if they took to the new GBTA you gave them, they may have stood their ground defending it.

This may be one of those tank mysteries that will remain unsolved. One guess is as good as another.

:(

 

[obelix]

Yah, I think you may be right.. I think the plan at this point is to feed it well, well better, more meaty diet and probably 3 times a day for a few months, if it's still attacking then I'll sell it.. I have lots of damsels that I'd really like to get rid of so maby I'll try to stop it if I was really under feeding it, and it attacks more than a few damsels then I will find it a new home..