Morbid question

irishspy

irishspy

There is a stargate in my aquarium.
Nov 6, 2002
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So, I found one of my four Amanos dead this morning: his brethren were eating him. :eek:

I immediately tested the water and found the ammonia had spiked to between .25 and .5*. Given the condition of the corpse, I think he was there for several hours, maybe a day, before I noticed him.

So, what I'm wondering: I assume dead shrimp decay pretty fast. Could one small rotting shrimp account for that spike, or do I likely have another problem somewhere?

*(Straightaway, I did a 30% water change this morning, and I'll be doing another 20% tomorrow. Plus I put a zeolite packet in the filter.)

Amusing moment: When I first went to net out the corpse, it moved! :eek3: Then I noticed the large shrimp was dragging it under the driftwood, away from the Evil Food-Stealing Net. I decided this was part of the Shrimp Religion: "No! We must eat our departed brothers, infidel!" :laugh:
 
Assuming that the tank is the 10G and the tank is cycled, no, the shrimp alone could not have caused that big of a spike. Try to find another cause for the spike. It could be your tap. Test your tap water to see if there is extra ammonia.
 
IMO, it could have caused the spike. Ten gallons isnt that much water, expecially when you take into account the deco and such. If the bioload of the tank is small, the bio filter will be small , therefore the mulitiplication of the bacteria will take longer to handle an unexpected spike in parameters..:)
 
i would go with somthing else that caused the spike...sorry for the loss.
 
In a light loaded, small tank such as the 10 gallon....it could have easily caused the spike. Are you missing anything else?

I doubt it is your tap water, but I presume you are using a declorinator that handles chlorine and chloramine, and it had been greater than 24-36 hrs since your last water change when you discovered things.
 
I had a dead juvie mbuna in a 46 US G tank which turned up dead and I am sure caused a wee spike to .25 ammonia. I would think it entirely possible the shrimp caused your spike rather than the other way around but do as rbishop says and check things out.
 
I lost a whole tankful when they added some sort of chemical to our water. I had to call the water company to find out, they didn't tell anyone.
 
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