Yellow Tang not eating

[lr172]

I have a new 75G SW tank. It has fully cycled and had three small damsels in it. I purchased what appeared to be an active and healthy yellow tang about 2 weeks ago. When I purchased him I had a great deal of brown algae (diatoms, I assume). He seemed healthy and would swim fairly actively. However, he was quite shy and would hide behind the rocks whenever we were near.

Over the two weeks, I have never seen him eat. Because he would never come out from the rocks when I was there, he never ate any of the flake that I feed to the Damsels. I would try some Nori on a clip every other day, but I don't think he ever touched it.

The brown algae is no gone and the Tang doesn't come out much. Yesterday, he was out and seemed very lethargic. He still has his color, but I fear that he is starving. He won't take the flake or the Nori. I put some regular shrimp in there the other day and he didn't take that either. He still won't touch the Nori. I did a water change (15%) today; First one after adding fish three/four weeks ago.

Any suggestions? I fear that I will lose him soon.

conditions:

Amonnia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 0-5
PH 8.1

Thanks for your assistance.

 

[Corty]

Try an algae wafer, like the kind made for plecos. I had put some in for the inverts in my tank, and my Tang went nuts for it.

For a more nutritious and almost equally yummy to Tangs treat, try some Ulva Macro Algae (Sometimes called Sea Lettuce).

You might try ordering some Ulva on eBay, and feeding an algae wafer in the meantime.

Mine ignores Nori sometimes too. It's taken him some time to get used to it. I don't know what they fed him at the LFS.

 

[waffleman]

Hi there,

You could try Seaweed Selects,Green Marine Algea . My tang went crazy over that, my angel loves it too.
Just a small piece on a veggie clip...

Waffleman

 

[srgetz]

He needs to eat soon, was he eating at the LFS? If so, maybe try that food. Try some live brine shrimp to get his appetite going, and maybe some blood worms. Mixing with liquid garlic can help too. Mine also like Formula 2 frozen Angel food, but try the brine and worms first IMO.

 

[quarryshark]

Yes try some different frozen foods. San fransisco brand make some great "smelly" food that may spur his appetite. Also try lacing the food with some garlic juice, that has been know to trigger a feeding response.

 

[Salttanker]

How long was your cycle process? If he is not grazing, or taking food at all then perhaps it could be a problem with the water. Or, do you have glass tops? I had to remove mine for better oxygen flow. You should try to get your PH to 8.2 - 8.3. Tangs are very sensitive to over all tank quality. HTH

Mike

 

[lr172]

The cycle was about 5-6 weeks. I used a few shrimp and put in three damsels the last week, as the nitrites were tappering off. I do have glass lids, however the back 3 inches across the tank is open. Is that enough for O2 exchange? I also removed the powerhead a week ago when I set up the skimmer. Could that be causing a problem? I put another one in there yesterday. I now have the Magnum 350, a 275 GPH PH and a 135 GPH PH going.

He probably was the one that ate all the brown algae, I just never saw him eat it. I put in 5 hermits and 5 snails at the same time, so I cannot be certain it wasn't them.

He is out again today and looks fine, he just doesn't really move. He stays in the same spot.

I bought some veggie discs yesterday that have kelp and spirulina as the first ingredients. I put a couple behind the rock where he hides and a couple out front. Don't know if he ate the ones in the back, but didn't touch those in front. He still hasn't touched the Nori.

thanks for your suggestions

 

[Salttanker]

You definitely want to turn your water over at least 10 times. This will help create better oxygen. 75x10 = 750gph.
Also, I scratched the glass tops and bought some egg crate at Home Depot as a suggestion from Steve -s. It works beautifully, and my system is more stable than before. Look in the lighting section. HTH

Mike

 

[austinsdad]

Anybody think the damsels be upsetting him? Or are yellow tangs too tuff for that?Just trying to consider all scenarios.

LR172, even if that's not the case, I've heard of many trying to get those sometimes territorial, agressive little beasts out later when they terrorize others. Hard to do with a more established tank and a bunch of live rock.

 

[Salttanker]

My Tang drives the damsels off. Each one has their own personality though. I think it could be a filtration problem along with the glass lids. I would throw 1 or 2 Maxijet 1200's in to help with the filtration. It will make a difference. They are cheap enough too.

Mike

 

[srgetz]

I still say try some live brine, maybe mysis or worms to get a feeding response from something a little more natural than pellets or flake.