dead peppermint shrimp

[tbrock]

I found my Peppermint shrimp dead in a tight spot betwwen two rocks today. I cant find any reason for why it would have died. all my water levels are great except for nitrates, which are at 10. he was usually pretty active and crawled around alot on the rocks and sand, until i got my stronger lighting a couple days ago. he stopped moving around so much and hid most of the day. i thought he was just a little scared because of the brighter lights, but then he died. could he have died from stress of the lights?

 

[SeriousDude5]

Is there anything in there that may be teritorial because I had 4 stripe demsils and I lost my cleaner shrimp to them because he went into there teritory and they just picked at him till they died...he was lodged in a cornor when they finally got him they cornored im and each time I wet in with the net the demsils would swim away. Then once I looked away they were back at it...

 

[tbrock]

i have a yellow tail damsel, but they have always been fine together and ive never seen him do anything to the shrimp. it didnt look like he had been picked at of anything either. he was in betwwen to rocks in apretty tight spot, like he had been trapped in ther when a rock was moved, but he rock wasnt moved by anyone.

 

[SeriousDude5]

There may have been an "avalanch" and he got cought up inbetween them though that is unlikely. I honestly don't know then they are relitivly hardy and I dont think the nitrates at 10 would be enough to kill them.

 

[quarryshark]

He could have molted. Keep an eye out for him.

 

[tbrock]

unfortuantley, it definitley wasnt a molt. i have seen it's molt before, and this looked a lot different. it was stiff and still had some color left so i could tell it was the real shrimp. a freind told me he read that if you dont add iodine, the shrimp may not be able to molt and will die, is that true? I also saw an article about acclimating new lights. i didnt do this, could that have been a problem?

 

[quarryshark]

I have never added iodine and my shrimp molt all the time. I would never add something that I cannot test for.
He may have just been old or he got stuck...sorry for your loss.

 

[cmor1701d]

If you do a PWC with any regularity then you have replenished the Iodine needed for molting.

 

[BillyZ]

If you do a PWC with any regularity then you have replenished the Iodine needed for molting.

Just seconding this comment.

I often hear about the, "you have to add iodine" tale and I don't give it any weight.