a bit concerned...

[chronick]

hi MFK, i have 4 4" satanoperca daemon that are behaving strangely... they keep on twitching, it's hard to explain but it looks like they're jerking their bodies every now and then. The daemons are still eating just fine and they seem to be doing okay although a couple of them have their fins closed more than normal. They in a 50 gallon grow out with 2 satanoperca jurupari at 5" and 2 geophagus surinanemsis at 3.5", both of the other species seem to be doing fine. Anyone able to shed some light on this behavior is it something i should be concerned with? I intended to do a water change momentarily but if anyone has experienced this kind of behavior before and can tell me why they are doing this please let me know

also, just a note, the 2x surinanemsis were added 3 days ago without being quarantined so parasites or maybe disease are a potential culprit although im leaning toward this not being the case because the surinanemsis looks extremely healthy

 

[Pyramid_Party]

What do you mean fins closed? Are they clamped fins? Sometimes fish do this jerking motion as a form of communication.

 

[chronick]

What do you mean fins closed? Are they clamped fins? Sometimes fish do this jerking motion as a form of communication.

before their fins were completely open (extended, stretched out? not really sure how to describe it) but now you're not necessarily clamped together but they're a closed and held in towards the body.

First of all get a quarantine tank set up and leave it set up, no offense just good sense.

Next since youve just added new cichlids to a tank it may be just territorial behavior, add some line of sight blocks like drift wood rocks etc. and a lot of hiding places. Most generally cichlids dont play well when new kids arrive in the Hood.

they aren't displaying this kind of behavior in front of the surinanemsis though. + one of the surinamensis is much more aggressive and chases the daemons and the other surinanemsis around

 

[chronick]

i've done a 50% water change and have seen no improvement in their behavior. Their fins are clasped and tucked against their bodies more than before, they are twitching more and they are far less active. What should i do? they look like they're sick but i've never seen this before

 

[chronick]

the symptoms make me think fluke worms, can anyone confirm if this is true? i've added salt to the tank and some parasite medication to see if their condition improves

 

[Chicklette]

Clamped fins and jerking motions often mean parasites. But before you dump meds in their what are your water parameters? ammona/nitrite/nitrate/ph Sometimes they will do this if the ph is not stable.