Sadness

[Falconwithaboxon]

Okay guys this might be a weird question but do fish get sad when one of their tank mates dies? I noticed that, about a month ago when one of my mollies died, the other mollies in my tank were not as active for a few days. I assumed it was sickness but they didn't show any symptoms except the low activity and none of the other ones died. So do fish feel sadness?

 

[Colin_T]

I doubt they feel sadness like people do but fish do have friends and they prefer to associate with some fish over others. Fish also bond (especially cichlids) and if one of the partners dies, then the other fish can mope around for days, weeks or even months.

Some fish live in groups with a pecking order and if a fish dies the pecking order takes a few days to re-establish and things can be a bit odd during that time.

 

[Geordie Paul]

Okay guys this might be a weird question but do fish get sad when one of their tank mates dies? I noticed that, about a month ago when one of my mollies died, the other mollies in my tank were not as active for a few days. I assumed it was sickness but they didn't show any symptoms except the low activity and none of the other ones died. So do fish feel sadness?

I'd replace the dead molly with another one of the same sex if I were you.