problem with new angels

Hi everyone,

        It's been a while since I've opened the aquaria boards. While
living in Texas we had as many as seven tanks--you know how *that*
develops. 

        Anyway, now we're in NYC. One tank, a forty. We had it filled
with corys and mollies, nothing special, and two rainbow cichlids. It
was also well-planted and lighted by a double 36" strip. 

        Well, the mollies just went Malthusian on the rest of the
tank. So this summer, prior to going on vacation, we bagged all the
fish, brought them to the store, drained and cleaned the tank and left
it empty. 

        We re-started last month. Same gear: coarse gravel, eheim
cannister with a/q powerhead fine filter, and a bubble wand 'cause it
looks nice. We put in some Amazon swords, some of those tall, loping
plants, and about half-a-dozen cories. We lost all but two cories. I
added four more; we lost three. The rest looked strong, unstressed,
eating well. After about three weeks, ammonia and nitrite levels
dropped to undetectable, with a barely detectable nitrate reading
(rapid cycle, I know, but NH3 did spike, then go down...). 

        The water smells good, looks good. Food was sinking cory
pellets, which they manhandled with gusto. Taking a chance, I bought
some more cories, tiny things the size of my pinky fingernail, and
four half-dollar size pearl angels (half-dollar including fins;-). 

        This was Saturday. They looked good, ate well, showed no signs
of stress. Then late Sunday we found an angel dead, then another this
morning, and the remaining two have spent the day huddled behind a bit
of driftwood that had been in the old tank. I don't see any overt
signs of illness, such as inflammed fins or rapid respiration, but
they don't look happy.

Temp is 78 (I'm trying to cool that a degree or two)
pH 7 or so
0 ammonia
0 nitrite
minimal nitrate

        Although I bought standard angel flakes for them, I also had
fresh blackworms, and we fed them those the last two nights, which
they took up eagerly. I'm wondering, however, if the food might not be
the culprit: perhaps they overate an unaccustomed food?

        The cories, including the new ones, from the same store, seem
happy as can be. Not a one appears stressed or ill.

        Am I missing something here, or is it just the luck of the
draw?

TIA

Andy Katz
____________________________________
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                    The Simpsons


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