VISITOR'S QUESTIONS
3... Transferring Fish Died
First of all don’t introduce any more fishes into the
aquarium just yet, and don’t get into a panic, this will lead to mistakes
and more problems, don’t jump to conclusions, think things out carefully.
It is difficult to pinpoint a diagnosis without knowing
all of the details or seeing things first hand i.e. the behaviour and
condition of the fishes, the condition of your aquarium and its water;
therefore I can only speculate from the information that you have given
to me.
If hydrogen sulphide were present in your aquarium,
you would initially have noticed an increased growth of algae and your
“feeder” fish would have shown symptoms before the introduction of the
other fish, these symptoms would have been violet colouration of the
gills and respiratory difficulty, the fishes would have been gasping
for air at the surface.
Although one of the factors needed for hydrogen sulphide
poisoning to occur in your aquarium may be present, i.e. the accumulation
of debris, other factors such as acidity, is not, as you say your pH
is 7.2. Also hydrogen sulphide is very noticeable due to its distinctive
smell of bad eggs.
One of the most common causes of fish death in the
aquarium is oxygen starvation. The fact that you have zero ammonia,
nitrite, and nitrate indicates that a healthy colony of “friendly” bacteria
is surviving, which of course will compete for oxygen just like any
other creatures, such as your fishes. Certain species of fish require
more oxygen than others, what species did you have for instance?
Plants also deplete oxygen levels due to nocturnal
respiration. The accumulation of debris from the dead plants in your
aquarium will also consume oxygen as it decays you now have scenarios
of a fatal depletion of oxygen.
High temperatures will also add to the problem because
there is less oxygen dissolved in warmer waters. Maybe the fact that
you added more fish just tipped the scales.
The fact that your water has a muddy appearance also
indicates a water quality problem. You mention someone told you that
Proper pH is the cause of the cloudiness. It is known that Proper pH
can cause a haze, but this is when it is used with water clarifiers,
it can also occur when the water is particularly hard, this haze is
only temporary and quickly clears as it is filtered out by the aquarium
filters.
It is possible for certain parasitic organisms to lie
dormant for some time, waiting for a host fish, but I can’t see any
such parasite that would be able to find its host and cause it enough
trauma to kill it in such a short time.
It does sound as though this is a water quality problem,
and I would suggest that you study my page on
water quality,
bear in mind I have little knowledge of your specific set-up.
In the meantime you should rectify the problem in your
aquarium by carrying out partial water changes (yes, you are right about
it being your only choice), approximately 25% per day for one week,
observing that the correct water treatments are used. Remembering that
at the beginning of this email I said not to introduce any more fishes
just yet.
Be sure to use a gravel cleaner to siphon the debris
away with the old water. Gravel should not be too fine, otherwise it
will clog with debris, 3–5mm should be ok. I actually prefer to make
the gravel work for me by using gravel plates, and running an under
gravel filter. Some would beg to differ, but I swear by them. Provided
they are regularly cleaned they are the best things for keeping the
aquarium and its floor clean and well filtered.
Are you sure you have adequate filtration for your
system? It sound like you are running an external filter, is it big
enough too cope? Try adding an internal filter as well; these filters
should be an appropriate size for you system.
After the week of water changes let it settle for at
least another week, the filters must be left running as normal. Once
your system has settled in and you are confident that all is well, start
to add your fishes, not too many and not too big. You can then build
up your stock slowly over a few weeks.
Remember to study the appropriate pages on my web site.
I am sorry I cannot be specific as to what actually
caused the death of your fishes, but I hope I have put some ideas your
way, as I’ve said I think it is a water quality problem.
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