Glowlight Tetra Advice

[newfin]

Dear Forum Friends,

My tank has been running for about 9 mnths now stats are below:
150litres
25 degrees C
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 20
pH 8.2

3 leopard danios
3 spotted corys
2 punctatus corys

I put in 6 glowlight tetras on Sunday. On Monday I swear we can only count 5 but for the life of us cannot find the 6th - have removed all the rocks/wood/plants and checked gravel etc and no 'body' found - so now we just think we are going mad and were only sold 5!! However this morning I noticed 1 glowlight not swimming with the others and not as active, by 3pm he was dead (white) at the bottom of the tank. I removed him and checked again for the 6th but nothing else found.

The above tests were taken this evening. I'm worried that the tetras are rapidly dying and concerned I have missed something. Also what water parameters will change if there is a dead fish I haven't found. I am concerned about the health of the entire tank as it has been running well for some time now.

Any advice please??

 

[WILDER]

Check inside the filter.
Also check around the floor area to see if he's jumped out, Sometimes theirs gap in the lid and the fish can jump out,. This happened to me once.

How long did you climatise the new fish for?

Check the fish for.
Any excess mucas on the skin or gills.
Do the gills look pale with excess mucas or red and inflamed.
Any signs of flicking and rubbing.
Do the fish dart around the tank.
Do the fish look pale or darker in colour.
Do the fish look bloated or skinny.
What does it look like when the fish go to the toilet.
Are the fsih still eating.
Can the fish maintain there balance in the water.

 

[Colin_T]

it sounds like the new glo-light tetras had a disease when you bought them and they are dieing in the tank, where they are then eaten by the other fish or snails in the tank.
The most common problem is bacterial infections and often kill rapidly without showing any major signs. Look for any red or white patches on the fish and if you can post a picture of them we might be able to spot the problem.

1 glo-light tetra dieing in a 150litre tank is unlikely to cause any major water quality issues. As the fish break down they produce ammonia but it will be a small amount due to the size of the fish, and the filter should be able to remove any extra ammonia as it is produced.

If you have a spare 30-40litre tank you could isolate the remain glo-lights and treat them with a broad spectrum medication like "Waterlife Myxazin". You can use the same medication in the main tank if you like but it can cost you a bit to treat a big tank.
If you do have a spare tank then you should quarantine any new fish for a couple of weeks before adding them to the main tank.

 

[newfin]

Many thanks for the much-appreciated advice. Remaining 4 glowlights appear to have normal behaviour, feeding well, and good colour. I double checked again for the elusive 6th including checking the filter and still haven't tracked anything down. A fish mystery for now!!

 

[Colin_T]

it got abducted by aliens

Hopefully the 4 remaining glo-lights will be ok and settle down. If any more disappear or die then post a pic or let us know asap.

 

[newfin]

Sadly over the last few days my smaller punctatus cory became more and more lethargic and emmaciated I even removed her from the side of the filter pipe a couple of times yesterday where she had become stuck and weak. I euthanased her last night as it was obvious she was suffering. I'm now worried for my other corys (1 large punctauts who has grown really well and looks marvellous, the above cory was always small), 2 peppered corys.

Then this morning I found a glowlight dead on the bottom of the tank. The anal opening looked red but I hadn't any prior signs of illness in this fish or the remaining 3 glowlights. They are feeding, good colour, occasionally darting though which could be something but this is occasional and i assumed it may have been part of the group behaviour, perhaps not? The glowlights were introduced to the tank on 3/5/09 I'm now down to 3 from 6! Is it me or the stock from the LFS?

Water tests performed this morning:
Ammonia - 0
Nitrate - 20
Nitrite - 0
Temp 25 degrees
150 litre capacity
20-30l change with thorough gravel vac weekly.

PS 'abducted' glowlight still unaccounted for!