What is wrong with the mouth of my chromis?

[MamaLovesHerReefTank]

Every once in a while one of my chromis has issues with it's mouth. This has been going on for a couple months. Other than this, the chromis is healthy, no other issues in the tank. My other 3 chromis don't have this issue. It seems like the bottom of it's mouth hooks onto the top and it gets stuck like that for a bit then releases after a short time. During this time it can't eat. We've had this chromis for 2 years. Hopefully the pictures will give a bit more insight.

 

[melypr1985]

That is very odd. I wonder if it sustained damage there a while back and it healed like a "hang nail" and sometimes that piece just gets caught on the top "lip". I'm not sure honestly because I don't think I've ever seen that before.

 

[MamaLovesHerReefTank]

That is very odd. I wonder if it sustained damage there a while back and it healed like a "hang nail" and sometimes that piece just gets caught on the top "lip". I'm not sure honestly because I don't think I've ever seen that before.

It's really weird. It happens out of the blue. It doesn't seem stressed when it happens either, unless it's feeding time.

 

[Humblefish]

Do you ever see him picking near a zoa, paly or euphyllia coral? I had a nutty chromis that would nip at the tip of a large frogspawn and would look like that afterwards for a few days.

 

[Humblefish]

Also, have you been using any superglue gel in your tank recently? Some of your photos remind me of that.

 

[MamaLovesHerReefTank]

Do you ever see him picking near a zoa, paly or euphyllia coral? I had a nutty chromis that would nip at the tip of a large frogspawn and would look like that afterwards for a few days.

I've never seen it nipping at any corals. When it happens, it only last for about 15 or 20 minutes at most and then goes back to normal. I have used super glue gel a few times to hold down some corals.

 

[cmcoker]

I'm going with battle wound, let me dig up the photos of my chromis like this. He lived with it just fine, it did slow him down on eating but eventually the lip came unhooked from the bottom lip. Never healed to look normal..
Here's my thread on it.
https://www.reef2reef.com/index.php?threads/256361/

I lost my chromis in a tank move in November 2016

 

[MamaLovesHerReefTank]

I'm going with battle wound, let me dig up the photos of my chromis like this. He lived with it just fine, it did slow him down on eating but eventually the lip came unhooked from the bottom lip. Never healed to look normal..
Here's my thread on it.
https://www.reef2reef.com/index.php?threads/256361/

I lost my chromis in a tank move in November 2016

I think I'm going to agree with this. If it happens during feeding I just hold a little back until it corrects itself. He's still swimming with the others so I'm not really that worried since it's been ongoing for a while.