Who killed the fire fish?

[Sw33tdave]

Hit the LFS yesterday and brought home a YWG and a pistol shrimp as well as a fire fish. Woke up this morning and the fire fish had died. Chemistry all looks good and all other inhabitants are healthy.

My fire fish was very interested in the burrow the pistol shrimp was making and I'm wondering if he could have killed him? This is a 15g nano and of course after reading in hundreds of places that the goby/pistol combo is a must have in all sizes of tank due to their limited need to move around, I'm now finding sources that say pistols can be aggressive in smaller tanks.

Alternatively, is it now likely my fire fish just died of tank shock? He looked perfectly healthy and was eating just yesterday. Maybe he was sick though?

 

[Tamberav]

What kind of pistol shrimp?

Did you check salinity of the bag he was in?

 

[Tahoe61]

It probably just died from acclimation stress. The pistol was probably too distracted.

 

[Starry Night Reef]

The firefish probably killed himself. Maybe its just my luck, but firefish always die randomly for me or cause an ich outbreak in my tank. But if he died that soon it could've been a hard adjustment? Were the other firefish in the store tank healthy?

 

[Sw33tdave]

What kind of pistol shrimp?

Did you check salinity of the bag he was in?

Did not check the salinity of the beef the fire fish was in. Didn't know this was recommended. He's a

 

[Sw33tdave]

I did not check the salinity of his bag. I didn't know this was a thing.

Tiger pistol.

 

[Tahoe61]

I did not check the salinity of his bag. I didn't know this was a thing.

Tiger pistol.

Definitely.

It's much more difficult to acclimate a fish to a higher SG. Most LFS keep their fish in a much lower SG to combat disease.
You can bring down the SG fairly fast, but you can't increase it quickly.

 

[Sw33tdave]

Definitely.

It's much more difficult to acclimate a fish to a higher SG. Most LFS keep their fish in a much lower SG to combat disease.
You can bring down the SG fairly fast, but you can't increase it quickly.

Definitely.

It's much more difficult to acclimate a fish to a higher SG. Most LFS keep their fish in a much lower SG to combat disease.
You can bring down the SG fairly fast, but you can't increase it quickly.

Got it! I'm thinking it wasn't the pistol. I've been watching my skunk harass him all morning and he's showing no aggression.

Does someone have a link for how to best acclimate these fire fish?

I keep my tank around 34ppt.

 

[Tahoe61]

https://www.reef2reef.com/ams/acclimation-made-easy-aquarium-livestock-acclimation-tips.161/

:)

 

[Tamberav]

Got it! I'm thinking it wasn't the pistol. I've been watching my skunk harass him all morning and he's showing no aggression.

Does someone have a link for how to best acclimate these fire fish?

I keep my tank around 34ppt.

This is worth a read, #7 near the end of the article talks about salinity.

https://www.reef2reef.com/ams/acclimation-methods.903/

 

[Tamberav]

https://www.reef2reef.com/ams/acclimation-made-easy-aquarium-livestock-acclimation-tips.161/

:)

This looks out dated. It is not recommend to long “drip” fish anymore. Someone should really go clean up old articles as it is confusing.

 

[Sw33tdave]

The firefish probably killed himself. Maybe its just my luck, but firefish always die randomly for me or cause an ich outbreak in my tank. But if he died that soon it could've been a hard adjustment? Were the other firefish in the store tank healthy?

Other fire fish looked good. Had them eat for me and they looked like they were thriving. Color looked good and no signs of disease I could see. I'm thinking it was shock that got him. My skunk has been bugging my pistol all morning and he really didn't seem at all interested in hurting him.

 

[Sw33tdave]

It probably just died from acclimation stress. The pistol was probably too distracted.

I think you're right. I've watched all my other stock interact with the pistol now and he seems very docile.

 

[bobnicaragua]

I stopped buying firefish. If I buy 3, maybe one will make it more than a year. They tend to disappear or I’ll find them dead on the side of an MP40.

 

[Starry Night Reef]

I stopped buying firefish. If I buy 3, maybe one will make it more than a year. They tend to disappear or I’ll find them dead on the side of an MP40.

yea same. firefish are on my do not buy no matter cool they look list lol

 

[Sw33tdave]

I stopped buying firefish. If I buy 3, maybe one will make it more than a year. They tend to disappear or I’ll find them dead on the side of an MP40.

Bro! He was dead on the side of my wave maker! Is that what killed him? I just assumed he got stuck there after he died? I didn't think it was a relevant detail.

 

[jabberwock]

Hit the LFS yesterday and brought home a YWG and a pistol shrimp as well as a fire fish. Woke up this morning and the fire fish had died. Chemistry all looks good and all other inhabitants are healthy.

My fire fish was very interested in the burrow the pistol shrimp was making and I'm wondering if he could have killed him? This is a 15g nano and of course after reading in hundreds of places that the goby/pistol combo is a must have in all sizes of tank due to their limited need to move around, I'm now finding sources that say pistols can be aggressive in smaller tanks.

Alternatively, is it now likely my fire fish just died of tank shock? He looked perfectly healthy and was eating just yesterday. Maybe he was sick though?

You should not have introduced three animals at the same time in a 15 gallon tank.

 

[Sw33tdave]

You should not have introduced three animals at the same time in a 15 gallon tank.

Noted

 

[IceNein]

Bro! He was dead on the side of my wave maker! Is that what killed him? I just assumed he got stuck there after he died? I didn't think it was a relevant detail.

It was not a relevant detail. A floater is going to float around until it hits the area of high suction on the side of your pump, or in your overflow, unless it's heavy enough to sink to the bottom and stay there.

 

[Sw33tdave]

It was not a relevant detail. A floater is going to float around until it hits the area of high suction on the side of your pump, or in your overflow, unless it's heavy enough to sink to the bottom and stay there.

Okay got it. Thank you.