Ugh. May have a predator.

[Jbotelho85]

So I lost two fish recently, not sure if they died, or what. I lost a green blotch parrot fish, who was healthy, but started hiding frequently. I have now not seen it for over a week and a half. I thought maybe my sergeant majors were harrasing it, so I was able to catch one and brought it the lfs. Now, one of my chalk bass, who used to hang out with the parrot, began to hide all of the time, and now I can't find that one either. The other chalk bass is beginning to hide as well, but is still coming out to swim every now and then. My other fish are all active and out in the open. It makes me sad as I love the green blotch parrot. Any ideas on how to see if I have a pest who may be eating them? The water quality is mainly good. Sali ity is aroun 1.024, temp is 79, phosphates are a little high around .3 ish. Tank has been up fot three years, is a 90 gallon with a 55 gallon refugium and ATS I also run carbon.

 

[MarvinsReef]

Could it be a Bobbit worm.? They live under the and and have been known to eat fish.

 

[Jbotelho85]

I have no idea, it just started happening. I hope it's not a bobbit worm. I tried using a red flaslight to tonight and didn't see anything.

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Fish hiding makes me think bullying rather than ambush predator. Could any of your other fish have a bad attitude?

 

[Jbotelho85]

I had two seargent majors, caught one and brought it back to the store, now I have one, going to attempt to catch it. I have a hawkfish who seems kind of passive, but the pygmy angel does give chase and kind of stops, doesn't seem overly aggressive. My thoughts were the seargent majors if it's not a predator.

 

[Sean Irwin]

Seems like aggression to me. The pygmy angel does sound like the most likely culprit. I'd try to banish it to your refugium for a bit and see if anything changes.

A bobbit worm capable of catching and eating such a large fish would be pretty noticable. A mantis shrimp is another possibility but also unlikely. You can also try to "bait" a potential predator at night (some silversides in a sealed container with small holes).

As for the date of the party, I'd carefully search around and behind the aquarium. You might find that the fish jumped.