yellow watchman GONE!

[peterl23454]

hi.

the watchman was in the tank last night at 11.00 pm when i came home today at 3:00pm he was nowhere to be seen.

he was sharing a cave with my emrald crab for a couple of nights they were side by side and no apparent problem.

potential blame takers are the crab,coral banded shrimp,2 peppermints{doubtful?}

other occupants are bi color angel,yel tang, lawnmower,2scooters,4 green chromis.

the watchman was the smallest fish in the tank{a 55}.
i figured even if the cbs ate him i would still be able to see his belly full of yellow..
any idea on how long something like that would stay in his system?

any ideas?
also i just got a xenia,yellow leather,haitian pin tip{condy???},
see any problems here?

[peterl23454]

i still havent seen him....

checked around back of tank just in case...but no
:(

[gobygoby]

well....nothing in the tank would have gotten to him unless he died, then crabs would have eaten him. I have a pink spot watchman with about 3 emerald crabs and they are doing just fine. if he did die, the current probably took him behind the rocks and thats where the crabs ate him. ( if he died) other then that, he might just be hiding.

Goby

[Reefadict]

Did You shut everything down and check the sump or pump intakes? My spotted blenny got in the sump today. The overflow box is atleast 1in above water level and the teeth that the water flows through are too small for him to fit through so I quess he jumped into the overflow and got sucked down the standpipe! I have a micron bag submersed in the sump as a filter and I shut every thing down and looked down into the bag and saw nothing. It wasnt until I physically removed the bag from the sump that I found him in there!

[peterl23454]

still no sign of him...today i will be adding my unions to my newly hard plumbed sump,and will do a thorough investigation

[peterl23454]

turns out the little guy jumped into the overflow box and into the sump he went. he was caught in the drip plate box up top.

supprisingly enough he IS ALIVE, after being in there for a little over 48hrs. his dorsal fin is badly damaged..and hopefully it will grow back w/out any infection.

for some reason he looked VERY stressed?

and to think i was blaming my 2peps or the cbs.

well i already caught 1 pep in a trap and he's in the sump. should i return him to the main tank, or take him back to the lfs? i've read mixed opinions. they never come out..i'm lucky if i even catch a glimpse come feeding time

hopefully the lil guy will make it and be a real survivor

[technoshaman]

Interesting. I had a yellow watchmen (still have) I bought about 8 months ago for my then 6 gallon nano. He lived happily in there but went missing after about 3 months. I was in the process of moving everything to a larger tank and after moving one very 'holey' piece of live rock he came shooting out when I lifted it out of the water. I was surprised and pretty happy - he still resides in my 18 gallon with his / her? mate another yellow watchmen.

Been thinking about putting them in my 75 but afraid they'd get lost among all the bruisers in there (niger trigger, 2 damsels and a regal)

[fletch33]

Same happened to me except he was mia for about 3 months then when the tank was killed he was the only one that made it :)

He lived for about 3 more months and then I gave him to the neighbor who says hes still alive. I will visit him in a few days when the neighbor leaves and I have to feed his FO tank. Maybe I will fish him out and back into my tank ;)

Nahhh he probably likes the peaceful FO friendly fish

I like these hardy fish

Fletch33

[dc]

Yes, they can disappear for months, just when you count them out, they show up again.

[Reefadict]

Dude, You suspected he was dead and you waited 48hrs to check the sump?

[Reefadict]

Im not going to flame and PLEASE dont take this wrong, But these critters rely soley apon us for their survival since we have taken it apon ourselves to rob them of their natural enviorment for our own personal enjoyment. The least we can do is supply their basic needs and offer safety. So man, next time you suspect something is wrong dont take 2 days to investigate! And seriously Im not trying to be an a-hole so sorry if it comes off like that but it just needed to be said.

[peterl23454]

i was unfortunately very busy those days,and also nedded to add unions as i hard plumbed it cause my lhs was out of 1 inch unions .
i am not making excuses and i completely agree with your point......ok

i come home from work today and guess whos missing???
thats right..so i carefully inspect the tank thinking he might just be hidden good,nope

now that i have my unions in i immediately checked the sump and there he was again.and this time with damage to his pectorals.

is this guy part lemming?whats up w/him?

i just decreased the flow in the tank so he can swim a little easier,and hopefully wont make his wasy into the overflow box. i am also taping foam around the outputs so he doesnt end up in the drip tray again

[lburns]

peterl23454,

We are the guardians of these small creatures so as a responsible aquarist you need to stay by your tank for the next 2-3 weeks until you can be sure that that little fish is safe. You may have to take vacation from work but it is your responsibility to figure out how that precious little angel is putting himself in harms way. Remember, you took him out of the ocean and now you are responsible for his life. I would suggest sleeping by the tank at night so you can hear the splash when he jumps into the overflow. Also, try to sign up for a fish CPR class just in case he jumps out of your tank when you are in the bathroom.