Dead fish

[JacobD]

I have a dead wrassle somewhere in my aquascape that I can’t see, although I haven’t been able to visually see the wrassle I know it’s dead because my ammonia has slowly gone up. Can I just leave it in the tank and do water changes and will everything be alright?

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

I have a dead wrassle somewhere in my aquascape that I can’t see, although I haven’t been able to visually see the wrassle I know it’s dead because my ammonia has slowly gone up. Can I just leave it in the tank and do water changes and will everything be alright?

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

It depends a bit on the size of the wrasse and at what point your tank is in the nitrogen cycle. What test kit are you using for ammonia? What level does your test kit show?

 

[JacobD]

I used an API test kit for the ammonia cause it’s the only thing I could find. The Wrassle is an inch since it was young still. I’ve been told it could probably just been eaten

 

[JacobD]

Forgot to mention the ammonia showed to be less then 1

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Forgot to mention the ammonia showed to be less then 1

That’s the problem with the API test, “less than 1 ppm” isn’t good enough resolution, 1 ppm is toxic, while 0.25 would be ok. Can a local store test it for you?

 

[W31Olds]

What size is your Tank?

 

[JacobD]

What size is your Tank?

75 Gallon

 

[JacobD]

Forgot to mention the ammonia showed to be less then 1

That’s the problem with the API test, “less than 1 ppm” isn’t good enough resolution, 1 ppm is toxic, while 0.25 would be ok. Can a local store test it for you?

I tested it again and it showed .25 and my nitrate was close to 0 as well.

 

[JayM]

That’s the problem with the API test, “less than 1 ppm” isn’t good enough resolution, 1 ppm is toxic, while 0.25 would be ok. Can a local store test it for you?

Is 1 ppm really toxic? RHF discusses ammonia needing to be in the teens for it to be lethal, and around 5-10 ppm to be harmful. Now I'm confused.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Is 1 ppm really toxic? RHF discusses ammonia needing to be in the teens for it to be lethal, and around 5-10 ppm to be harmful. Now I'm confused.

The toxicity of ammonia is pH dependent. At a pH of above 8 or so, 1 ppm total ammonia in a seawater aquarium is toxic. It won't kill all species of fish, but it will kill more sensitive ones, and stress the others. It is the free ammonia (NH3) fraction that is the most toxic. You should always strive for a total ammonia reading of less than 0.25 ppm at a pH of >8.1 and begin remediation if it approaches 0.50 ppm for any length of time.

 

[SeaWhatYouSave]

How old is your tank and what type of wrasse is it? Some species of wrasse are notorious for hiding in the sand for days or weeks after they're added or after they become stressed, so it might not be dead. Furthermore, assuming you used API's Ammonia test kit, it's common to see a result of 0.25 ppm when the ammonia isn't actually that high (since 0.25 ppm is the first step after 0 ppm).

If it is dead and the tank is well cycled, it should be fine to leave the wrasse in there. If the tank is not cycled or has a very low bioload, it might be problematic. Pay attention to your ammonia (I like using Seachem Ammonia Alert) and take action if the ammonia continues to rise by performing a water change or using a product like Seachem Prime.

 

[W31Olds]

No way a 1" wrasse is going to change anything in a 75 cycled Tank and your Wrasse may not be dead.