Oh. My.

[mwm]

I remeber that othet thread about this. Like PT said if it was so bad for the fish that it would disease the fish people wouldnt do it just becuz of the high cost of the fancy plecs

 

[Synirr]

I don't think holding your fish out of water is necessarily a good idea, but I don't think it's too terribly bad for them, either. It's not like the guy on that link was holding them out of water for hours at a time... each probably stayed out less than a minute, which I wouldn't think would be stressful enough to cause any real problems except in rare cases. I mean hey, if fish were stressed to death that easily, a lot more of them would die during the shipping process.
From my meager understanding of anatomy, I think that a fish can breathe (though maybe not as well,) out of water, so long as its gills are still moist. The moisture is what allows for gas exchange... or something. Correct me if I'm wrong about that, please

Too, not all fish mind being handled. My female bettas gladly swim into my cupped hand if I hold it underwater, and like to weave between my fingers
I'm trying to "train" my oscar to be comfortable with seeing my hand in his tank so hes not as likely to bite me when he gets older *lol*

 

[Opcn]

Fish that can breathe out of water for atleast half an hour include but are not limited to Lung fish, labrynth fish,some gobies, mudskippers, Clarias Catfish, ichtheostega (extinct relative of celocanth), certain pike, and some perch.

Fish can absorb some oxygen from the air but there is very little airflow over the gills and the gill arches are not supported like they are in a liquid medium, But this doesnt matter to a pleco who is out of the water for less than a minute.

Plecos are bottom feeders, on the bottom there are periods with little oxygen sdo they are well addapted to "holding there breath" there are also many bottom dwelling catfish that will sojourn from one body of water to anotheruseing the stout first pectoral ray that is present in them, and plecs. Most fish in a tank know there owner and are not very afraid of them and fish such as plecs with there armour arent liable to be scared very much by a predator takeing hold of them (the fright response is there to help motivate an animal to stay alive, if the animal doesnt need to do anything to stay alive it has no reason to be frightened, You dont need to do anything to stay alive while on your computer except breathe, How frightened are you?) , The fish have there bodys away from the hand and are supported from the edges, they have rought scales so they are not likely to suffer from damage do to slime coat removal like say a cichlid would and they should be well cared for in other ways, IMO if you take good care of your fish a little thrill now and then keeps them from getting bored.

 

[wuvmybetta]

No, they don't breathe air.  Their labyrinth organs can only do so much, and it is for occasional "gulps" of air.

I beg to differ. They consume little to no air from the water. They can actually drowned if they can't get surface air. I've seen it.

I personally handle my juvie bettas every other day when I do water changes. We don't use nets around here and my fish aren't complaining. So I think some of the statements that have been said are a matter of opinion and not fact.

A couple of weeks ago I pulled a punky boy out of the grow out and put him in a cup, half full with no lid,certain he couldn't jump that high. I left with intentions of coming right back with clean water to fill his cup up and lid him but I forgot and it was a few hours before I came back. I found him on the floor...crispy, so I went to pick him up and he flipped so I chunked him back in his cup and he looked great a couple of hours later. Good ole labyrinth organ

But on another note...

Besides, these plecos are expensive! If every fish taken out of the water to be photographed suffers tremendously and dies, you would think that people would stop doing it due to the sheer cost of some of the plecos, wouldn't you?

Excellent point!

 

[Never2Bknown]

Very true...

OOH OH!!!

Did you know that the Bowfin, also known as the dogfish, can survive for 24 hours out of water by using its swim bladder like a modified lung? They can also survive in practically any water so long as it isn't poisoned. Now THAT"S one hardy fish!

 

[Phantom Thief]

Snakeheads beat that. They can walk across land to go from pond to pond. And they might just give the bowfin a run for its money in a fight. And they survive in pretty much any water too.

What can i say? I love snakeheads!

P.T.

 

[rick999]

dunno how right or wrong it is, i wouldn't do it

but they are really impressive photos gotta give him that!

 

[Never2Bknown]

Yeah, well Bowfins are practically fearless predators--and they get over 2 feet long. I've come face-to-face with them several times while snorkeling in a nearby lake. They're more annoyed with me for following them than scared--they're the boss of the whole lake and they know it. And did you know that, like the Coelacanth, they are one of the most ancient fish still alive today? They've got fossil records of the Bowfin. And besides, they, unlike the Snakehead, are a native fish species and are therefore beneficial--rather than detrimental--to the environment.

 

[Phantom Thief]

Snakeheads ARE a native fish species. here at least . Did you know Channa Micropeltes gets up to 3', and several people a year die from attacks by these guys? Or Channa Marulius, 4'? Talk about fearless predators.

P.T.

 

[Never2Bknown]

WOW. That's COOL!!! I wonder if I could fit one of those things in my mom's fish pond...