What ate the feeder guppies?

[ilovefish]

I have a 55 gallon tank with the following:
2 yellow tailed damsels
2 damsels
2 black velvet neons
2 fire fish
1 dottyback
1 yellow tang
1 foxface
1 coral beauty
1 sweet lips
1 slug
1 candy tip anemone
I bought my sweet lips and coral beauty on Friday and at the store the woman game me 6 feeder fish for the sweet lips and I put them all in and within 3 hours they were all gone. What could've ate them besides the sweet lips. I cannot imagine sweet lips eating all 6 of the fedder guppies. Anything else possible?

 

[lionfish]

LionFish says.....
There are many possibilities here. Trust me, the sweetlips could eat them all. Fish may look like they have small stomaches but that aint the case. An example is my freshwater Clown Knife fish who is only 4 inches long can wolf down 2 dozen guppies in a matter of hours. How big is the DottyBack? If it is big enough it could eat guppies. Ya know gups don't last too long in salwater tanks. They could've died and any inverts in the tank could've picked them up. The Anenome could've snagged one if they were gettting weak. My bet is on the Sweetlips, though. Also, just to let ya know, freshwater feeders have no nutritional value and I don't suggest feeding them too often especially for smaller fish. Maybe a couple every 2 weeks as a snack but thats about it. Also, don't you think you have a little too many fish in a 55 gallon tank. You may seriously overpopulate all thos fish. I would recommend you get a 90 gallon or more within a year or 2. Sweetlips aren't little fish, some get up to 10 inches to a foot long. Do some reading and research on your fish. You may be surprised at how many fish you should put in a 55. Hope this helps.

 

[grouperhead]

more than likely the sweetlips. 6 feeder guppies isnt much, when i had red bellied pacu, they vould eat about 100 guppies in literally 20 minutes. i had 5 of them. the inverts could have gotten them to, that is if they fell to the bottom. later, bo

 

[grouperhead]

if the damsels were big, it could be those also. later, bo

 

[picasso]

I've read several of your posts and, like Lionfish, I would suggest investing in a few good saltwater books. Your tank is way, WAY overstocked- and you have several fish that are inappropriate for such a small tank, let alone such a full tank. Overstocking can lead to poor water quality, disease and death. It's obvious your fish store is more interested in making money off you than they are about giving you good advice. Unfortunately, saltwater is not like freshwater- you just CAN NOT cram that many fish into a tank and expect success. I would encourage to look for another, more responsible store that is willing to look after your, and your fishes', best interests.
Please do not take this as a flame. I'm not trying to make you feel bad. It's obvious you are excited about the hobby and it's great you are asking questions. If you are interested in learning more I would sugggest reading Robert Fenner's "The Conscientious Marine Aquarist". It's a great book for beginners. Also Scott Michael's fish atlas, "Marine Fishes" is a good quick reference book that give info on care and requirements for common aquarium fish, include recommended tank sizes and feeding habits.
I would suggest you try to ween your sweetlips off live guppies. Besides being expensive long term, they can introduce disease and bacteria into your tank. Feeding freshwater feeders to marine fish is a bad idea anyway. Freshwater fish do not have the correct proteins that saltwater fish need for long term health and body function. Feeding them exclusively will lead to health problems and can cause fatty build-up around the liver. I would actually suggest taking your sweetlips back to the store. It will quickly outgrow your tank- they get really big! And when it gets larger, chances are it will eat your smaller fish! Most sweetlips varieties also outgrow their juvenile coloring and become big, brown, blah fish...

 

[b_ball12_99]

Originally posted by lionfish:
<STRONG>LionFish says.....
An example is my freshwater Clown Knife fish who is only 4 inches long can wolf down 2 dozen guppies in a matter of hours.</STRONG>
I have a black ghost knife and he also eats them rapidly. We stopped getting feeder guppies and started getting rosies. Still eats them all in a night. We also have a silver shark(FW) and a rope fish that eat them. They all live together in the same tank.

 

[lionfish]

LionFish says......
Bball, tell me about it. Those suckers eat like crazy. He already ate my wife's swordfish, and platy's. Not to mention tearing apart a small frog. Truthfully, I was tired of the swordfish and platy and made the excuse, "Oh, its not aggressive, honey, it likes your fish." Yeah, he liked 'em alright. Hehehe. I also have my 2 precious breeding Archers, 2 silver dollars, a 10 inch plecostomus, and an electric catfish together. They're in a 70 gallon together. But you want to hear a monstrous tank? How bout my 50 gallon tank with a 10 inch Red Devil Cichlid, a 6 inch Jack Dempsey, a 5 inch Texas Blue, and 3 African Cichlids ranging between 3 to 5 inches. I have to buy 12 dozen guppies a week. The nRed Devil can eat over 60 guppies in 45 minutes. Not to mention the lions who expect their weekly snack of 2 guppies a wweek. Now thats a lot of feeders.

 

[b_ball12_99]

Ever consider getting rosies instead? They are a bit bigger. Oscars love them. Love dropping a dozen in and seeing the devoured in 30 seconds. Hard part is keeping the oscars in the tank. The lid opens and they see food out they jump.

 

[grouperhead]

rosies also look healthies imo. i feed them to my one lined pictus cats and pacu. you ever see a pacu when they know they have an easy meal? my 4 pacu could easily eat until they died, they are gluttons! my pictus also could eat more earthworms than all the american robins in bama! mine also love live river shrimp. later, bo