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Unfortunately, I'm not in a position to say what kinds of symptoms Blue Emperors display from the kinds of infections they're susceptible to. Because of my freakish position maintaining the tank at the local library without having one of my own, I'm usually not around when a fish actually decides to go to that Great Sushi Bar In The Sky. With depressing frequency, I leave them one day acting perfectly normal and come in 2 or 3 days later to find them sprawled on the bottom. (There have been exceptions -- as when I've had to contend with Neon Tetra Disease and Whirling Disease, both of which have unmistakable symptoms -- but I've never lost a Blue Emperor from those.)

In the article I'm referring to, though -- in the July 1996 "Tropical Fish Hobbyist" -- Stanislav Frank describes it:

"...Infections of still-unidentified bacteria, which erupt in the guts of young fish, can wipe out whole broods. The fish suffered from constipation, which caused their bellies to swell up, and they swam around aimlessly. The head and tail areas became darker and darker, and the middle of the body became lighter. Untreated fish died within only a few weeks."

Frank began by using penicillin, which worked -- but to which the bacteria soon evolved resistance. He finally found (God knows how) an unlikely-sounding natural remedy consisting of a brew made out of alder bark and cones, which (judging from his recipe) can be whipped up easily by anyone with a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in a mere three or four months. According to him, this stuff seems to work on a permanent basis -- which suggests that it's actually providing the fish with some kind of vitamin that they need to sustain their natural disease resistance. As he says, "You may notice that this solution is really a blackwater tonic. There are commercial blackwater tonics on the market that may work as well as the solution just outlined, but I have not tried them. You may opt to do so, however, and it may save you some time and effort." To put it mildly.

I have to say that -- in my own limited experience with Blue Emps -- I didn't have much luck keeping them going with Blackwater Tonic. However, I have had bad luck with LOTS of fish in that tank, and have recently acquired strong evidence that this is because the library staff were overfeeding the fish to the point that septicemic bacteria took hold in the tank (despite the fact that standard chemical tests of the water showed it to be clean). After I threatened the librarians with violence and sudden death, they have recently cut down their feedings to the point that the tank is far cleaner, and sure enough my fish seem to be holding up far better -- but I haven't had a chance to try out Blue Emps yet under this new sanitary regime.

Footnote: another article I have from the Nov. 1991 TFH suggests that the bacteria that infest Blue Emps are associated with even very small concentrations of nitrite (as little as 3 mg/liter), which, sure enough, is usually due to "decomposing food animals". This article urges "frequently skimming and changing the water and using an efficient filter". It also says that they seem susceptible to Ich, although I never saw them with it (and in fact have had extremely good luck getting rid of that disease with "Rid-Ich", to the point that I have never lost a fish from Ich in 16 years).

Thanks very much for the info Bruce, it was most enlightening,even if you dont think it was,lol, its a kind of missing piece slips into place thing. I think if I do bother with Blue emperors I will go with a species tank, at least that way I can eliminate cross species infection issues, and I might even indulge in a totally authentic aquarium with as many type locality materials and plants as possible. I reckon ive stopped NTD in tetras at least for the time being with much the same trick, and a bit of (oddly enough) home made blackwater, including some odd quinine barks I found at a chinese health shop.Theyre probably just in a kind of remission, but hey , its a step forward.

Ive had good luck with ich too, since I discovered esha exit Ive not lost a single fish that way.I guess its all down to product knowledge, you have to try a few before you find a good one, and some of the older treatments are probably losing their potency as the parasites get resistant.

My favourite are Serpae Tetras, i have nine of these and they are active, and i have found them to be very hardy. There colours are great and they keep their nipping behaviour to themselves, not bothering my platies or danios.

The very experienced staff at my LFS (I've been extraordinarily lucky in that respect, especially since I live out in the country) say that they've finally found something that can lick NTD -- or rather, reliably stop it from spreading any further, since a fish that actually starts showing any symptons is already doomed. According to them, you give the tank a 50-50 dose of Nalidixic Acid and Neomycin equal in total amount to the dose of nalidixic acid alone that's recommended on the package. I've heard of N.A. being a possible anti-NTD agent before -- but I found out the hard way that the full dose of it recommended on the package is usually lethal to fish. (It's the only really dangerous fish medicine I've found yet.)

According to the store, though, this 50-50 mix -- without poisoning the fish -- will (assuming you've already removed and euthanized all fish showing symptoms) quickly cut down further mortality to a small level, and then eliminate it completely within just a few days.