No Idea Where My Sea Hare is...uh oh.

[anentwich]

So...I bought a sea hare last Friday, and it disappeared on Sunday. I have PLENTY of hair algae for the guy to consume, so food is not a problem. I acclimated the sea hare for 20 to 30 minutes using drip acclimation before putting the slug in the DT.

I noticed on Sunday he was leaning up against a rock with his underside exposed and was kind of arched. I looked back at the tank 20 minutes later and he was gone. I have not see him since.

I do not know much about the behavior of the sea hare, but I do know that when they die they emit toxins that could kill all of my fish. Nothing has died yet, so I don't think the slug is dead yet either. However, I have a small tank so I feel like I would be able to see the slug if it's alive (it's about two to three inches long) even with a good amount of rockwork.

If anyone knows a lot about their behavior or where the sea hare could be, please let me know! I would really like to find the sea hare before it does die and crashes my tank.

Thanks!

 

[LeslieH]

Many of them prefer to be in or under rocks especially during the day. Some will dive under the sand. Since there are no bones or shells they can squeeze into amazingly small spaces. It's not unusual for one to disappear for several days or longer.

Sea hares are nowhere near as toxic as nudis. The parameter spike if one dies would probably be much more of a problem than any possible toxins.

 

[Grant W]

Just a little note I've had them before keep an eye on it because I believe they do a great job but they are the dumbest animal alive haha they will get stuck going in place that are too small climb into power heads and rip them selves open trying to stuff themselves into spot just my opinion, Buuuuut the do do a number on algae . Take care. Grant

 

[anentwich]

Thank you both for the info. I'll keep an eye on the tank and my parameters in the upcoming weeks for any large nitrate spikes.