Fish Fighting
- Thread starter poohbear1
- Start date
The April FOTM Contest Poll is open!
š Click to vote! š
Miss Wiggle
Practically perfect in every way
There are a couple of reasons why fish can fight, itās important to work out what the problem is before you can fix it.
Some species are just aggressive naturally and will need to be kept with suitable tank mates so they donāt fight or if they do then they are equally matched so that they donāt do too much damage to each other. Sometimes you will get a fish which according to the species profile shouldnāt be aggressive, but they just are! Just like while most people are generally reasonable and calm, some people are just plain aggressive and mentalā¦. It happens all across the animal kingdom, even the humble neon tetra has character variations. So if you have got a super aggressive fish it may be best to re-home them to a tank with more suitable inhabitants.
That may not be the case though and the aggression may be a reaction to something, a lot of peaceful animals will fight if they are backed into a corner, you just need to get them out of the corner and they will calm down.
So first thing to look at is tank mates, if they are kept with something unsuitable that they are scared of then they can lash out, likewise if they are kept in a unsuitable number (e.g. schooling fish kept by itself) they can become scared and start to attack other fish. Attack is the best form of defence!
Secondly is tank size and dĆ©cor, if a fish is crowded, or itās a fish which needs a certain sort of dĆ©cor like itās own cave and it doesnāt have it, then once again they can become aggressive to protect themselves.
And last but by no means least is water quality, fish can quickly become distressed when the water is poor, if there is ammonia or nitrite in the water you can expect strange behaviour including aggression.
So first thing to do is to identify/rule out the 3 main points above, so what are your water stats, what size is the tank, what species and how many of each, what dƩcor do you have, pic if possible
Some species are just aggressive naturally and will need to be kept with suitable tank mates so they donāt fight or if they do then they are equally matched so that they donāt do too much damage to each other. Sometimes you will get a fish which according to the species profile shouldnāt be aggressive, but they just are! Just like while most people are generally reasonable and calm, some people are just plain aggressive and mentalā¦. It happens all across the animal kingdom, even the humble neon tetra has character variations. So if you have got a super aggressive fish it may be best to re-home them to a tank with more suitable inhabitants.
That may not be the case though and the aggression may be a reaction to something, a lot of peaceful animals will fight if they are backed into a corner, you just need to get them out of the corner and they will calm down.
So first thing to look at is tank mates, if they are kept with something unsuitable that they are scared of then they can lash out, likewise if they are kept in a unsuitable number (e.g. schooling fish kept by itself) they can become scared and start to attack other fish. Attack is the best form of defence!
Secondly is tank size and dĆ©cor, if a fish is crowded, or itās a fish which needs a certain sort of dĆ©cor like itās own cave and it doesnāt have it, then once again they can become aggressive to protect themselves.
And last but by no means least is water quality, fish can quickly become distressed when the water is poor, if there is ammonia or nitrite in the water you can expect strange behaviour including aggression.
So first thing to do is to identify/rule out the 3 main points above, so what are your water stats, what size is the tank, what species and how many of each, what dƩcor do you have, pic if possible
Corleone
Fish Herder
Tetras will tend to fight amongst themselves, IME the bigger species more so. It's generally harmless as long as they keep it in the group. Sometimes they can get pretty bad about it, but will settle down once everybody's been put in their place.
Sounds like you have the flame tetra on his own. Lone tetras, or tetras in small groups, can sometimes become nuisances, since they take their nippiness out on tankmates instead of others in their own species. He might be going after the other bleeding hearts because the look more like himself than anything else around, but that's just pulling guesses.
Unless it's getting bad enough that you're seeing serious injuries (my black skirt tetras have mostly stopped their bickering over time, but they still get the occasional torn fin), it sounds like pretty normal behavior aside from the flame tetra. He may have to be separated, particularly if you don't have room to have a school of them.
Sounds like you have the flame tetra on his own. Lone tetras, or tetras in small groups, can sometimes become nuisances, since they take their nippiness out on tankmates instead of others in their own species. He might be going after the other bleeding hearts because the look more like himself than anything else around, but that's just pulling guesses.
Unless it's getting bad enough that you're seeing serious injuries (my black skirt tetras have mostly stopped their bickering over time, but they still get the occasional torn fin), it sounds like pretty normal behavior aside from the flame tetra. He may have to be separated, particularly if you don't have room to have a school of them.
The tank is 190 litre with gravel plantpots plants etc.
according to 1 inch fish per gallon I am now fully stocked once all my fish are fully grown.
The flame tetra and the silver tip tetras have been in the tank for about a year with no problems but since I added the bleeding heart tetras the flame tetra is chasing them and the silver tips are fighting amoungst themselves.
The bleeding heart tetras are hiding beside the kribs who unusually are not bothering that there are fish near them.
There has been no injuries yet but I will keep a close eye on them and if I have to move them into the baby krib tank (which I dont want to do cause the babies are still small)
the ammonia and nitrite are 0 and the nitrate is 10
I have 2 kribs
1 flame tetra
4 siver tip tetras
1 red tailed shark
1 dwarf gourami
3 white cloud mountian minnows
and added the 6 bleeding heart tetras yesterday
according to 1 inch fish per gallon I am now fully stocked once all my fish are fully grown.
The flame tetra and the silver tip tetras have been in the tank for about a year with no problems but since I added the bleeding heart tetras the flame tetra is chasing them and the silver tips are fighting amoungst themselves.
The bleeding heart tetras are hiding beside the kribs who unusually are not bothering that there are fish near them.
There has been no injuries yet but I will keep a close eye on them and if I have to move them into the baby krib tank (which I dont want to do cause the babies are still small)
the ammonia and nitrite are 0 and the nitrate is 10
I have 2 kribs
1 flame tetra
4 siver tip tetras
1 red tailed shark
1 dwarf gourami
3 white cloud mountian minnows
and added the 6 bleeding heart tetras yesterday
Miss Wiggle
Practically perfect in every way
try re-arranging the decor in the tank, this effectivley removes all territories and creates a level playing field for the fish, doesn't always work but it's worth a shot!
I dont want to do that if I can avoid it cause I think the kribs have laid eggs again.
The female doesnt move far from the entrance to the plantpot.
I might take them out and bag them for an hour then put them back in
The female doesnt move far from the entrance to the plantpot.
I might take them out and bag them for an hour then put them back in
Miss Wiggle
Practically perfect in every way
i don't think taking them out will make much difference tbh. even if you don't disturb the flowerpot could you move anything else around or add something new?
Most reactions
-
302 -
225 -
162 -
149 -
137 -
132 -
129 -
126 -
119 -
106 -
88 -
85 -
78 -
71 -
69
