Hippo Tang dying

[mrcoffee2]

I have had this hippo tang for maybe 3 weeks to a month. He has been a voracious eater during that time until yesterday. I noticed he was hiding / lethargic. Today I came home from the gym and I am pretty sure it is going to die but I need help figuring out why. I don't notice any sign of ich or disease that I can see visibly.

Perhaps it is the food I am feeding him? I have been primarily feeding R.O.E Which he has been gobbling them up every night until he is nice and plump.

My second thought is perhaps it is the macro algae I introduced. I put in this red macro algae in thinking it would be good for him to eat, and he has been eating it the past 3-4 days.

My 3rd thought is perhaps I shocked him with a salinity rise? I raised it from 1.022 to 1.024 over the course of 2 weeks but I really do not think that this would be the problem.

Besides the salinity my water parameters are pretty good as you can see my corals seem fine.

Here is a pic of that macro algae

 

[ca1ore]

Based on the frag plug, I assume this is a tiny hippo? If so, they have a pretty high mortality rate I'm afraid.

 

[mrcoffee2]

Yeah he is tiny about 1.5 inches.

 

[Kworker]

Have you treated him in a QT? 3-4 weeks is a usual quarantine time and will show if the fish has any major diseases. It could be possible that the fish has some form of internal issue.


The Jump in salinity from 1.022 to 1.024 in a fairly short time isn't really even a concern. I wouldn't think that over the course of weeks would have a negative reaction on the fish. However, the initial acclimation could cause shock to the fish. Most LFS's keep their salinity low where the home tank is much higher.

A question to ask, what is the tank details? What is the size of the tank and what are the tank mates and how are they doing?