agae eaters/ sucker fish

Question
QUESTION: I have a small 7 litre tank with a danio  black moor and a tetra in with a plant and oxygen block and 2 algae eaters which i added to the tank 3-4 weeks ago things have been fine until this week when the largest algae eater has been attacking the other fish. It killed my striped danio last on the weekend and had started on my black moor being the slowest fish in the tank. Would this be due to lack of food for both algae eaters? I have taken the large one out for now the smaller one continues to feed around the tank and shows none of this behaviour.


ANSWER: Hi Davina,
 When you say that the algae eater attacked the danio, was that because you saw it swim up into the water column and attack the danio or because you saw it on the bottom with the danio in its mouth?  Most likely it was the latter, and in that case, the danio probably died or was dying and was lying on the bottom and the plecostomus (algae eater) found it.  Algae eaters very seldom "attack" healthy fish.

-- Ron
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
  Cichlid Research Home Page <http://cichlidresearch.com>


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Ron,
     No the algae eater was actually chasing the fish in the water column it has sucked quite a lot of scales off my black moor which I actually watched it do and am presuming they will grow back. I removed it after watching this behaviour for 10 mins. The black moor doesnt seem to be to badly injured but im sure if the algae eater had remained it would be.
         Thanks Davina.

Answer
Hi Davina,
 Have you been putting food in the tank for the algae eaters?  If not, then they are basically starving.  You should get some sinking algae wafers to feed them.

-- Ron
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
  Cichlid Research Home Page <http://cichlidresearch.com>