Queen Conch croaked

[megadon]

I was wondering why my Queen Conch would have died, I was thinking starvation as what else could it have been, listed below are the tank mates and I'm sure the water conds wouldn't have played a part as surely a more sensitive creature would have died before. Also a month or so back I lost my Trochus snails which leads me to believe in the lack of food theory. I would like to get another and was wondering what to add for food for it.

 

[megadon]

No one has any ideas? How long are they expected to live in an aquarium, do you spot feed them?

 

[megadon]

The one I had for 4 months or so was just over an inch long and maybe an inch high. I've heard they get hude but he had plenty of room in my tank.

 

[mlm]

Was there any algea on the rocks or glass for it to eat?

 

[austinfish]

I have had the same thing happen to me. I have lost snails and crabs and I test the water and everything seems fine. I have hair algea that I have to scrape off ever few weeks, so I don't think it's lack of food, unless it's lack of the right food.
This worries me. I don't like it when anything dies in my tank and I can not figure why. All my levels are good and my fish and corals look fine.
I have no idea what is causing this???
Any thoughts anyone?

 

[megadon]

Im my tank there is no longer much alge on the glass, as for the rocks I can't tell, I have many dfferent colors of alge. I have tiny creatures on my glass, the size of a pin head, I think they eat most of the alge on the glass. The Conch stayed pretty much in the front of the tank for the past month or so, some days seeming to hardly move.

 

[bang guy]

Queen Conch aka Strombus gigas eat Diatoms as their staple food. They can eat hair, Cyano, and even some macros but they need a LOT of Diatoms to thrive. They should live about 20+ years if well cared for and reach football size.
I would guess starvation. Try replacing the Queen with a Fighting Conch (Strombus alatus). The size is more appropriate for a 40.
Another posibility are your Ca and ALK levels. If they are fine I would still consider it starvation. At 4 months it should have been at least 2" long.

 

[megadon]

Thanks Bang a guy, I will take your advice, if they eat diatoms, how do I keep them in supply? Excuse the question but are diatoms the tiny little critters on the glass?

 

[saltyrich]

I experienced the same thing. Here is your answer. The peppermint shrimp ate him. I personally watched my quenn conch pulled from the shell and consumed by two peppermints.

 

[bang guy]

Originally posted by Megadon
Excuse the question but are diatoms the tiny little critters on the glass?
Very good question actually. The tiny critters on the glass are probably Copepods and most species of Copepods eat Diatoms.
Diatoms are a type of single celled algae that build a Silicate based skeleton. Limiting factors include Iron, Silicates, Phosphate, and Nitrogen. If you want more Diatoms you will need to figure out which of the above factors is in short supply in your tank. Be advised that the above list in great quantity will also promote other nusiance algae including Cyano, Bryopsis, and even Dinoflagillates (bad news).
Distos are most visible when scraping the front of your tank. They will create a brown or green cloud when rubbed off the glass. They can also cause a brown buildup on the substrate if their population exceeds the capacity of your diatom grazers.

 

[megadon]

Salty Rich,
I believe the Peppermint Shrimps ate him after he was already dead, that's why I noticed mine was dead, the peps were pulling at him, he was in the tank for months with the shrimp, so I doubt they killed it. As for Diatoms, I believe I have a sufficient supply, but not too much as my glass and top of the sand bed is relatively clean, the turbos do a decent job if anything start to grow on the glass.

 

[saltyrich]

Maybe so, but I know of at least three people here in my area that have witnessed peppermints jumping onto a moving queen conch and pulling them out.

 

[megadon]

Well that's pretty disturbing, as I wanted to get another Conch, what a delicate balance it is trying to setup a friendly reef enviorment.

 

[saltyrich]

you got that right. I've lost a few things along the way that I thought would work well together.

 

[erikandstacie]

I have three Peps with a queen in my 75. When I first introduced the Queen they all picked on him for about an hour, but have left him alone ever since. My Peps are never aggressive toward anything living unless they are EXTREMELY hungry. Even then, I've only seen them picking at my Frogspawn. As long as I give them some treats a few times a week, they mind their own business while picking through all the nooks and crannies on the rock.
Just .02