Chromis used to "school" now..just sit still? Concerns??

[4play]

ive had 3 Chromis for two weeks and the first week they were all swimming together freely all over the tank..the LFS said my water was good..this week..they just sit still..one in the front corner, hovering over the sand..one other keeps peeping in and out of my live rocks..and today one was just hanging out hovering over a live rock..i feed them and they dont even react..surprised they havent died from lack of food

anything i should be concerned about? is this normal for chromis? i kno they have some weird behaviors..i want to start adding more fish but this makes me nervous..im gonna get my water checked again at the LFS and we'll see what happens

[Aaron]

How were they eating the first week when they were swimming around?

How long has your tank been running for?

[4play]

The first week they were eating and swimming freely..It's been running for a good month and a half..I used premixed SW from the LFS too

[Funkateer_1]

FWIW, chromis don't school long term. They pair off just like clownfish do.

As for the lethargic behavior, chromis are often very mistreated at whole-sellers and importers and often exposed to nasty medications. IME, they have one of the worst mortality rates of 'common' SW fish imported in the hobby.

[4play]

noticed one chromi was starting to swim a lil more today..i guess given their weird behavior..i guess its a good thing that they havent died yet..i can still account for all of them..my water was a lil warmer today for some reason..how much heat can wavemakers and pumps add to aquarium temp? should i adjust my thermometer accordingly?

[bladedrummer]

I was gonna ask what the temp was. I accidentally unplugged my heater once while I was cleaning and my chromis and the diamond goby I had seemed in slow motion. Luckily no one was hurt but they did look ill for a couple hours.

[JohnnyAirtime]

I had 12 Chromis, along with many other fish in a 240... for a year.

In the last 3 to 4 months, I've lost all but 3. 1 more just last week.
Found'em floating on the bottom with his whole tail missing.

The last 3 still school every now and again, but will often hide out in the corals.

... odd behavior, and odd that one-by-one I'm losing them. A mystery for sure.

[4play]

it sucks mine arent swimming..just chillin in one spot all away from each other..makes my tank look fishless..is it too much to ask for fish that roam around? :(

[pollywog]

I started with 15 blue-green chromis in a 120 gal. They were schooling and eating ravenously together for a few weeks, then slowly one or two would stop schooling with the rest, just hiding in the back and seldom eating, if at all, until only one was left.

[davocean]

Chromis are very sensitive as damsels go, when I've had any issues in the past they always seemed to be the first affected.
I would even say they are not the best damsel or "starter fish" as some people use damsels for(not recommended by me)
W/out knowing specifics about your tank my guess would be they might just be sacred in the new tank, maybe.
Some people swear chromis fight till one is left, or pair up and kill the others.
I've had great luck w/ them myself, and mine do "shoal"(the correct term) though I think it may be due to my always having tangs/larger fish which they may feel threatened enough to do so.
My longest lasting group were 6 I had 6 years and lost them to a heater failure way back, but I've had other groups long term as well, and in both odd and even numbers(another myth IMO)
Don't rely on LFS testing your water, you should have your own kits, and try to leave the room or distance yourself when feeding, see if that helps.

[4play]

a little update: looks like in my case i had a bullying issue..i noticed two fishes with their tail fins chewed up and missing..yesterday i woke up and found one dead and stuck to my filter (mustve died overnight) so i took it out and trashed it..and then i left to do some errands and came back to the second chromis with HALF his tail fin gone and swimming in circles just barely above the substrate..took him out and flushed him..on chromi now and his just hanging out..swimming more but its only been a day

[JohnnyAirtime]

... who's eating away at the tail fin? I had a few in my tank, with the SAME problem (missing tail)!

[skratchiechan]

I've had mine (5 chromis) almost a year and no deaths.. getting lucky I guess