Bichir death

Vintagehalo

Feeder Fish
Dec 7, 2017
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Hello, im new to the forum and relatively new to the aquarium hobby (tank since beggining of may 2017). My most recent addition was a bichir and he just passed away today. I just want to learn why and get some oppinions on future care. Some background, the main inhabitants are a mix of cichlids (they are still doing great), a common pleco, and a whiptail cat. I have been trying to fix a nitrate problem in my tank that started about a month after i added my bichir because of the addition of new foods that i was giving him, i started using nitrate/nitrite detoxifyer and water changes but it still persists. I added the bichir along with a plant around early October and he was doing great, feeding well and everything until yesterday morning when i noticed he was on his back but breathing. This of course panicked me and i didnt have much time to do more than top off the evaporated water with fresh water and put some nitrite/nitrate detoxifyer in the tank. When i got home he was upright i did a about 60-70% water change and tried to clean the crushed coral bedding ( which i have been putting off) as best i could and refilled with fresh tap water with tap conditioner. He seemed weird through the whole process swimming funny but upright. This morning i looked and he was upright and breathing and looked normal so i thought that might have been it. But when i got home he passed, upon removing him i took a look at him and he looks bloody and bruised. It makes me wonder if he hurt himself somehow on a rock in my tank or if he was bullied by the other fish? Im slowly learning from my mistakes and i want to avoid this in the future if i decide to add another one to my tank. Any advice or opinions are welcome. Pictures are of him healthy and after his passing including one of his bruise? Also one of the setup20171102_225828.jpg 20171102_225828.jpg 20171207_184006.jpg 20171207_184034.jpg 20171102_225717.jpg
 

kno4te

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Sorry for the loss.

Looks like it was from trauma. Maybe hitting the glass. Pretty bad looking. Hard to rule out septicemia but I doubt as it’s on the head too.

My suggestion would be to get another tank if you can’t get ur nitrates under control or up ur filtration and water changes.
 

TwoHedWlf

Potamotrygon
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Mar 2, 2017
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You have crushed coral substrate? That's good for your african cichlids, but likely to keep your PH too high for a bichir. What's your PH? It's also usually pretty abrasive.
 
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Vintagehalo

Feeder Fish
Dec 7, 2017
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Yeah thats what i figured is it looked like a traumatic injury. Must have been freaked out by my pleco rubbing up on him durung the night ( he never liked his tail being touched by him).ph is like 7.2-7.8 according to my test strips
 

kno4te

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Dec 24, 2005
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Lesson hear is that Plecos and Bichir don’t always mix well. Some will get a taste for the slimecaot and stress out the lapradei. Hard lesson to learn this way. Keep the fish hobby going. It happens to us all.
 
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