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I found my Chaetostoma sp. dead this morning. I had him for about 2 years. He was fully grown then. His water parameters were as follows: pH 6.7, 120 microSeimens, no detecible nitrites and nitrates using two different test kits. Water temp: 71 degrees F. I had a large airstone going in the 55 gallon tank. A 20% water change is performed weekly on this tank. His tankmates were (6)Scleromystax barbatus and (4)Corydora aeneus. He had the same tankmates for several months. The Chaetostoma sp. had his own territories well marked: several sets of flat rocks and large pieces of driftwood with hiding places. He would chase others away from them. His diet consisted of Aufwuchs and zucchini. He showed very little interest in the diet of his tankmates. They showed much interest in his diet of zucchini. He was quite active until about 2 days ago. I didn't think much of it because sometimes Chaes. become reclusive. When I took him out of the tank this morning, he was 1/2-white: that death-look Chaetostoma sp. start to take on. I'd say he wasn't dead long. His belly wasn't sunken nor black. Does anybody know the lifespan of these species, in general? Any insights would be appreciated.
Sincerely,
Amanda

Sorry for your loss. Knowing you, I'm sure you'll find some more Chaetostoma at some point in the future.

I don't know much about their lifespan, but I expect it to be several years (but there's no telling the age of your fish when you got it either).

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Mats

Sorry to hear about your loss. I have had mine now for over 2-1/2 years. Let me know if you want some fry I counted over 50+ last night. I fun watching 5-6 fry all trying to be the same rock at the same time chasing each other.

Thanks for the kind words, everybody. I'm here at the NEC convention in Connecticut this weekend. One of the speakers is Ingo Seidel. I asked him about what happened. It turns out these fish come from a higher pH and harder water than what I was keeping him in. Lee Finley also had some insight: "Like people, fish sometimes just don't get up in the morning to get the zucchini." I'll learn from this, wait a while, and try again.
Amanda