Platy Problem (Deaths And Births)

[raburgess]

Hi

I have have come home to a bit of a problem with my tank today and need help.

Firstly I have a 100 litre tank with the following parameters:

Temp: 25C/ 77F
pH: 6.5 - 7.0
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0

The tank has been cycled for a while.

My tank stock is as follows:

4 Platies (2 male, 2 female)
3 Peppered Corys
1 Venezuelan Black Cory
2 Dwarf Gourami (1 male, 1 female)
8 Norman's Lampfish
1 Red Tailed Black Shark

The Problem

I came home today to find two of my platies dead (1 male, 1 female)they were both behind a piece of bogwood (1 was pretty slightly underneath and the other was floating upside down in some java moss). One of the fish had been acting slightly out of character by swimming on its own down the bottom of the tank a few days before but didn't take much notice of this. bviously it's taken me a bit by surprise so I have been watching the tank thoroughly tonight.

Observations

The two remaining platies have also been acting strangely tonight, the female had been gulping air from the surface of the tank at the beginning at the night but now seems fine since feeding. The male has his fins clamped to his body and is hanging around at the top of the tank, he has also been spitting out his food.

I have also seen a platy fry which surprised me the most as I wasn't aware any of my platies were pregnant. I have taken photos of both the dead platies and the remaining platies in my tank to see if anyone can explain how this weird occurrence may have happened.

I must also add, all of my other fish are acting as normal and do not seem to be affected at all.

Pictures






Platy swimming at surface 1



Platy swimming at surface 1



Possible pregnant platy

 

[Cazgar]

I'm no expert, but in a cycled tank, you should be showing some nitrates.
How long has the tank been running?

 

[raburgess]

I'm no expert, but in a cycled tank, you should be showing some nitrates.
How long has the tank been running?

Sorry I do have nitrates but they are particularly low, between 4 and 6

 

[fishasker]

u were supposed to buy the tank then let it run for 1 or 2 days with filter then you can put what ever kind of platy you want this is an example

 

[Cazgar]

u were supposed to buy the tank then let it run for 1 or 2 days with filter then you can put what ever kind of platy you want this is an example

?

 

[Fishy friend2]

u were supposed to buy the tank then let it run for 1 or 2 days with filter then you can put what ever kind of platy you want this is an example

let me guess, you got this info from a pet store, well they are wrong, you need to cycle your tank before you get any fish

 

[KrystaK]

That's the way my dad thinks too, he didn't understand why I had the tank running empty for a month with no fish in it.
The filter works weather you plug it in two days before or 10 minutes before, it's the bacteria in the filter that needs to grow, that's what one needs to wait for.

As for your Platy's,from what i can see they both looked healthy, it could have just been their time, how long have you had them?

 

[the_lock_man]

Let's ignore the comment from Fishasker, as this adds nothing to the thread.

THe two remaining platies' behaviour would tend to indicate ammonia or nitrite poisoning, and if this were the case, it would also explain the other two deaths.

Do you really need me to explain the appearance of the fry as well?

 

[raburgess]

To clear something up I have had the tank running for a while now.

Check here for original post.

I have checked the water parameters weekly and have seen no reason for ammonia, nitrite or nitrate poisoning, especially as I have used water, substrate from my original established tank and have added fish sparingly (once every 2-3 weeks) and checked increase in bioload. Another reason I do not believe this to be the case is that my tank has much less hardier fish in than the platys and the behaviour of these fish haven't changed.

I added the platys firstly and that must have been about 3 months ago so not very long.

I have checked google images for confirmation that the fry was in fact from the platy and the pictures would agree with what I saw in my tank.

Having read some of the posts in this forum I was wondering whether maybe one of the platys who had died may have died as a result of giving birth, but again this does not explain why both have died and at the same time.

An update both platys are feeding now and seem more relaxed.