Sixline Soapfish

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Scuba Kid

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Aug 25, 2006
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Hi everyone.
I picked up a sixline soapfish grouper today at an LFS. I've always loved these fish and this one looked exceptionally healthy with a nice fat belly. :)

I know that they exude a toxic slime, but I'm confused as to what this means as I am hearing mixed info. From some places I am hearing that its sort of like cowfish, where they do this only when they are stressed. In other placed I am hearing that the toxic slime is actually part of their mucus coating and it is always there, but is only as problem to fish trying to eat them.

Can someone straighten this out for me? I would also greatly appreciate any other info and experiences anyone has with these fish!

Thanks! :)
 
I've kept soapfish before. When young, they're not that toxic. They can be moved from tank to tank with little risk. As adults, they're so toxic that they can kill themselves when they exude their toxic 'soap'.
This is what I've seen with my pair. I just made sure to net-bucket-bucket-net-tank transfer them as they were moved to larger quarters as they grew. But, as hefty 10 inchers, they exuded so much 'soap' when I netted them from the 240 to go into the 450 that they killed the 240 off completely and themselves when they were bucketed in 5gal buckets to rinse some of the toxin off of them before the final move to the 450.
 
At the time, I found out that 6 peptides (grammistins Pp 1, 2a, 2b, 3, 4a and 4b) with both hemolytic (destroys red blood cells) and ichthyotoxic (poisonous to fish physiologies) activities occur in the skin secretion of the soapfish (Grammistes sexlineatus).
 
yeah, ifyou can keep them in a lifelong tank andaway from anything picking on them, then you should be fine
 
Thats good news. Oddball was scaring me a little bit. lol
He's in a 55 right now, but in a month or so (hopefully less) he will be in a 150, where I plan for him to stay indefinitely.
 
I never intend to scare, only inform so adequate preparations/routine precautions can be learned and observed.
The hemolytic properties of the toxin also dictate that suitable protection (gloves) need to be worn when working in the tank. Any materials in contact with the fish's skin can be cleansed with immersion in boiling/near boiling water (breaks down the peptides).
 
could also soak in acid
or mango juice <----- learned that one from Alton Brown
 
Oddball;939401; said:
I never intend to scare, only inform so adequate preparations/routine precautions can be learned and observed.
The hemolytic properties of the toxin also dictate that suitable protection (gloves) need to be worn when working in the tank. Any materials in contact with the fish's skin can be cleansed with immersion in boiling/near boiling water (breaks down the peptides).
Click to expand...

If gloves should be worn while working in the tank, then wouldn't that mean the toxins are strong enough to harm any fish living in the tank with them?
 
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