Green Chromis Stress

[Trenton Henderson]

Hey all!

I have had the same group of 4 green Chromis in my 60 gallon for nearly a year and they have done very well and not nipped at each other because o feed three times a day, two of which are calanus and pellets, which are extremely nutrient dense.

This morning, as the lights were coming on, I noticed one stressed out hovering above the sand bed. His dorsal fin had a few minor splits. The other Chromis didn’t pay much attention to him except the biggest one was hanging near him, but not chasing him or anything. I’m not sure if an invert or something spooked the Chromis at night in the rocks or what, but I have placed him in an acclimation box to keep him away from the other Chromis.

He seems fine in here. Not eating yet though. The others pay no attention to him like you would expect if aggression was a huge issue.

I also don’t like this huge box in my tank as it messes with the flow for my coral frags, so I want it out ASAP. I was thinking about leaving him in there for the day and introducing him as the other fish go to bed, especially if they aren’t showing aggression. Does that sound like a reasonable plan? This should give him time to destress a bit.

 

[Troylee]

Not a bad idea but not sure how much it will help.. they like to bully each other to death.

 

[Trenton Henderson]

Not a bad idea but not sure how much it will help.. they like to bully each other to death.

The number one piece of advise I hear to successfully keep a group was feed often and keep them fat, which I believe I’ve done pretty well so far.

I am curious what got him stressed in the first place….

 

[Troylee]

The number one piece of advise I hear to successfully keep a group was feed often and keep them fat, which I believe I’ve done pretty well so far.

I am curious what got him stressed in the first place….

We’ve all been there.. I started with 12 and down to 4 and almost a year later now I have a pack of 3 and a outcast who hides in the corner of my tank so I’m guessing it’s days are numbered.. sigh… it’s just the nature of chromis.

 

[Trenton Henderson]

We’ve all been there.. I started with 12 and down to 4 and almost a year later now I have a pack of 3 and a outcast who hides in the corner of my tank so I’m guessing it’s days are numbered.. sigh… it’s just the nature of chromis.

It makes me wonder if the same happens in the wild despite there being far more and more space. Probably not as often, but who knows.

 

[Troylee]

It makes me wonder if the same happens in the wild despite there being far more and more space. Probably not as often, but who knows.

I doubt it as there is normally schools of thousands so the aggression is spread out and there’s plenty of hiding spots. Mostly acro forest they live in.

 

[Trenton Henderson]

Just to add a conclusion to this thread, I released him and he hid, but came out occasionally for a couple days and all seemed okay, but I woke up to all the other chromis chasing him to the other end of the tank, so I recaptured him and brought him to my LFS. He has a better chance of surviving in someone else’s tank than mine!

Now there is an odd number of three and they are all different sizes. The one I took to my LFS was a similar size to the most aggressive one, so that probably had a lot to do with it.