RIP Bonnie, you were The coolest!

[Sciroccoman]

So, yeah, as the title states, I lost one of my original six cichlids. Bonnie was one of two socolifi from my original purchase of Cichlids for my 30gal tank three years ago. The other of the two being Clyde, of course. Bonnie grew up second to Clyde on the power rankings of the 30g 'till about two weeks before the big move to the 75g. Luckily "she" fell into the clutches of my net to be the first one in the new tank. "YAY! I'm Number One!", she claimed as she had Clyde running for his money within 30 hours of the new setup. Lot's of time passed while the two were kept separated until I heard of a technic to reastablish power rankings. The reacquanting of Clyde to the big tank was a success and all was well in the faux Malawi Community. Then, not too long ago, I was given a few more tank mates, 2 OB Peacocks and three juvie Mbunas. Then things started going downhill for my only other Ahi Peacock, so I figured I'd separate the OB's from the tank to lower the aggression. Little did I know, (maybe from neglect) the aggression had already claimed Bonnie's life. Yesterday I did a rock rearrange and found out for sure who's body parts I saw stuck in the filter inlets. Soooo disappointing.

Bonnie became the coolest fish in the new 75 gallon set-up. developed a taste for my finger when I'd stick my hand in to fix the aquascaping. He would nibble and strike at my digit if I stuck it anywhere near his cave, That was the neatest thing I have ever experienced with a fish. He will truly be missedView attachment 683118View attachment 683117View attachment 683119

here's a short movie of Bonnie in his "Time Out Tank". video was shot only a couple of months ago...
[YT]<iframe width="560" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/d1qBY_J0hCQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>[/YT]

 

[Red Devil]

Sorry to hear of your loss.. i just lost my african cichlid to old age.. about 15 yrs old ... my original..

 

[Sciroccoman]

My 4 year old son just informed me that one of the fish had his head "stuck".... I go to check it out and it's Vaater Orlaag, my biggest Mbuna head down and belly up at the bottom of the tank.. this I'm very baffled how it happened, he has no visual indications of bullying.... ugh

 

[Brian_Indiana]

My 4 year old son just informed me that one of the fish had his head "stuck".... I go to check it out and it's Vaater Orlaag, my biggest Mbuna head down and belly up at the bottom of the tank.. this I'm very baffled how it happened, he has no visual indications of bullying.... ugh

Losing a fish sucks enough on its own, but to surprisingly lose one w/o any noticeable reason might be worse. You never know what happened or if it will happen again. If there is a problem or issue you can identify, at least you know what you are up against and how to proceed.