Ancistrus Fry Dying

Hello everybody,

Sorry for the long winded thread. So over the past few months I have lost a lot of Ancistrus fry (super reds) and I cannot say for certain what the cause is. I have raised a couple of hundred fry before this. Cant think of anything that has changed from then until now. I am aware of some other breeders that have lost whole clutches as well but haven't spoken to them directly so would appreciate their input as well. I also know of a breeder that bought a lot from another breeder that ended up loosing all the fish. I have also sold to said breeder but havent spoken to him to find out if my fish survived.

Tank parameters, (tested with strips, I know not the most accurate but all readings are consistent), pH 6.5 (tap water 7), NO3 20, NO2 0, chlorine 0, Hardness (cant remember). So only the NO3 is slightly high but still acceptable. 50% water changes weekly. The tanks in which the babies are kept are 1 1/2 foot tanks, all connected via overflow to a sump so water parameters for all my tanks are exactly the same. The whole system is about 400L in size. Each tank has its own air stone in. Temp is about 26 degrees. System contains angelfish, guppies, shrimp (Neocardina), corries, a couple of different varieties of plecos, Bettas and 2 apistos. The Ancistrus fry is only removed from the parents once they start leaving the caves or is left with the parents (Tank 2). None of the fish other than the Ancistrus and albino guppy fry were affected.

Tank 1 - I had 3 clutches in 1 tank about 2 weeks apart. The oldest juveniles was about 3 months old when the problems started. The tank has Langa soil in, is well planted and has 3 corries in and lots of shrimp and snails. They are fed hikari algae wafers, baby marrow and Tetra Discuss food. The only thing that I did different was to pull some plants out and I think that may have exposed some unwanted bacteria. They slowly started dying and over a period of a month I lost almost all the fry. Each fry would lighten in color and become lethargic and eventually die after a few days. No black/dark stomachs as mentioned in other threads on TASA.

Tank 2 - right next to tank 1. This tank is bare bottom with drift wood and moss and contained a breeding pair of Ancistrus, baby guppies (albino and black) as well as Ancistrus fry. The Ancistrus fry was about 3(?) weeks old when the problems started with Tank 1. The Ancistrus fry seemed unaffected but the problems in Tank 1. However, the albino guppies, and only the albino guppies, seemed to be affected buy the problem. They got clamped fins and/or became lethargic and died.

Tank 3 - Next to Tank 2. Planted tank with Langa soil, shrimp and Ancistrus fry that was about 1 month old when the problem started. Completely unaffected by everything.

So my questions/thoughts are:
Why would 1 tank be affected and not the others if they are all connected via sump?

Can it be that there is a bacterial issue that is linked to the soil perhaps? What soil types do the other keepers have that had such die offs?

Are super red fry more sensitive compared to normal Ancistrus? I only have super reds so cant compare to other Ancistrus varieties. I know guppies bred from some overseas countries do not always fare that well in our water but I believe my Ancistrus was bred in SA.

Any suggestions? Was thinking of hydrogen peroxide and a UV sterilizer(to prevent spreading).

Cheers,
Nico

 

Only comment I have ... the fry seem to do way better in a tank that has a stable temperature - even during WC's.

Once they get to 1 cm they are almost bullet proof ...

Later Ferdie

 

Any temp fluctuations, CO2 buildup, do you use r.o for water changes?

 

Run very low CO2 - not applicable for me in my view since the observation holds for when I was not using 1l of CO2 in a 24 hour period.
Not using RO - normal filtered tap water.

Now the CO2 thing at high dosage could be interesting ... this might have a pH fluctuation affect or acidifying the water.

Later Ferdie

 

Thanks for the input Ferdie. Water changes dont seem to bother mine. I would say closer to 3 cm. But once they have grown a bit the become bullet proof.

 

Nope, no big temp swings. I keep the door closed in winter to prevent the temp major fluctuations. I use normal tap water thats de-chlorinated. Please elaborate on what you mean CO2 build up? I dont dose CO2.....

 

Not running CO2. However, there is a pH diff of about 0.5 between my tap water and my tanks when doings water changes. But as I said, water changes did not affect the fry. It did affect my royal whiptail fry which I lost within 2-3 days after a water change. Even a small water change (50L on 400L system) killed off a batch of royals.

 

Our water has had a few BIG chlorine swings ( well what I can smell over the last few months) wonder if you not introducing some sort of other toxin with the WC ? Hope nobody is using your WC kit for other uses like washing floors etc ..

 

Possible. Will only cancel out possible water contaminants once I pre filter the tap water with charcoal for water changes. Could be that the water contaminants builds up in their bodies until it becomes too toxic for them to handle. But my argument against that would be that none of the adult fish are affected. The fry are more sensitive but exposure over a long period might/should(?) result in the death of all the fish.

 

Dedicated drum that only I use for the WC.

 

Do you use a dechlorinator at all?

 

Scape Dechlorinator