RIP Spot

[nunofs]

My copperband butterfly -- that my son named Spot for obvious reasons -- is no more

I got him from Cindy back in February, who had had him for a while in her tank... he was healthy as can be, always eating well (mysis) and always very active... cleaned all the featherdusters in my tank (not a problem for me) and was well behaved...

Yesterday he was fine in the morning, in the afternoon I saw him swimming erratically and bumping into everything in the tank, his colors had faded quite a bit (his stripes were bright yellow, now they were a dull brown)... he wouldn't eat, even when I dropped mysis right in front of him so I knew something was very wrong... an hour or so later he was lying on his side on the bottom and soon the cleaner shrimp were pretty much eating him alive (half dead)

I'm really sad today, he had become the family's favorite fish... sorry Cindy, I know you had this guy for quite a while...

Nuno

 

[NateHanson]

That's a real downer Nuno. Sorry to hear it.

Seems these are certainly one of the more delicate fish that are more commonly kept.

 

[nunofs]

Btw, Spot was the fish in the photo that won last month's photo contest... a "last tribute" to him:

Nuno

 

[~Flighty~]

Oh, thats too bad. I'm sorry for you guys.

I wonder what happened? It almost sounds like an anemone sting or something.

 

[nunofs]

No anemones in the tank...

I inspected the body after I removed him from the tank and I couldn't find anything... no marks, no cuts or sores... he was just much paler than usual and seemed to have trouble swimming, it almost looked like he couldn't stop in time to avoid an obstacle, he would bump into rock, corals, everything...

I still have a small mantis in my tank, haven't been able to catch it when it was living in a hole close to the front glass, and now he moved elsewhere... I can still hear the clicks, but have no idea where he is hiding... that's the reason why I checked the body, but there were no visible signs of it having been hit by the mantis.

Btw, I should add that all the water params have been stable for a long time (and pretty much perfect), so I'm pretty sure it didn't have to do with water quality.

Nuno

 

[Moe_K]

Dang! That's a bummer, Nuno.
I hope you can identify a cause.

 

[dz6t]

May be died of old age? just a thought

 

[scavdog]

Out of curiousity, how long had the fish been in captivity?

 

[nunofs]

I think it was too sudden to have been out of old age... and I'm not sure how long it's been in captivity, maybe Cindy can say how long she had it before I got it from her.

Nuno

 

[scavdog]

It's not uncommon for CBBF to succome to cyanide poisoning w/in the 1st 6 months. CBBF, that are not certified net-caught are often in this category.

 

[nunofs]

I thought cyanide poisoning was only a factor within the first month after capture... I believe Cindy had him for a long time, not sure how long though (months?).

I guess it's a bit futile trying to find a cause of death, but not knowing what caused this guy's death bugs me a bit because I feel there's no lesson to be learned from this, ie, I'm left with the feeling that there's nothing I can do in the future to prevent something similar from happening again

Nuno

 

[smcnally]

Nuno, the same ting happend to me. I had mine for about 3-4 weeks when it started swimming sideways and bumping into things. Then its color faded and within hours was dead on the sandbed. Here's a picture of when its color faded and it fell to the floor the first time. It was aweful to watch it struggle like that. Is this what yours looked like?

 

[~Flighty~]

Here is a thread where I talked about getting it. I think it came into the store December 14th.

http://216.235.242.50/forums/showthread.php?t=5421

I am also very interested in finding a cause of death. CBBs are a favorite of mine and I was planning on doing an article about care and buying a healthy one once the newsletter starts up again. Could you try asking about it on the fish disease forum of RC?

 

[nunofs]

Steve: that looks exactly like mine in its last hour or so, very faded colors (I can see the dark spot in yours had turned grey, same as mine).

Cindy: that's what I thought, that you had it for a few months... I will post on RC, thanks for the suggestion.

Nuno

 

[scavdog]

I think it came into the store December 14th

I hate to say it, but Cyanide is a good bet. I've experienced it first hand.

The best CCBF you can buy, which are nearly guaranteed net caught are from Australia. They are more money overall, but chances of survival are much greater.

You will find some stores do not stock CBBF because of the risk. Another example of fish that succome to cyanide are Flame Angels. The rule of thumb was that if they made it past the 6 month margin, you are in the clear.

I believe Mr. Hiller has some experience on the subject as well. Maybe he will chime in.

hth,
Joe

 

[marco67]

Joe is right,
I've been through it to.
an easy way to tell is price, this fish should cost close to $40. when net caught.
Buying the $19.99s is supporting the Cyanide collectors.

 

[scavdog]

check this:

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/chelmonfaqs.htm

 

[smcnally]

I paid right in the middle. $29.99

 

[~Flighty~]

Would the cyanided fish be fine one day and drop dead the next day after four months in tanks?

 

[marco67]

yes it would