yeah, it's called neons and cardinals just drop dead of no apparent reason no matter what you do.
Seriously. I've seen it happen too where you'll have a neon fine one day, and dead the next, no apparent reason. The abdomen is probably canabalism, or the soft parts of the fish rotting away before you find the body (In 75 gallons, it would probably take a week to find a tiny neon body<G&gt
.
How long has your tank been established? Nitrotgen cycle "new tank syndrome" is definately not a good situation for neons or cardnials.
Although advertised to be the "perfect beginner fish" neons and cardnails do require a lot more finesse in care than is popularly believed. Make 100% sure you are buying them from a reputible dealer. Many neons and cardnals are very prone to "neon tetra disease" in retail situations, and that's something you don't want. Neons and Cardnals also don't ship very well, especially in the summer where their transport bags are kept in un-ACed Fed-Ex trucks. Spring and early summer are also not a good time for Neons/Cardinals because the big farms they are raised at are spawning them, so the fish that come in are already spent from spawning and not strong enough to survive transport, much less acclimation into various new tanks.
~~Colesea
