This Is Very Strange

[scotty]

i have problem with one of my Rainbow Emperor Tetras, during the day he/she swims fine,after about an hour after the lights going off at night,he can't swim right,he starts swirling about and darting about the tank,i get up in the morning and it is fine it's got me baffled anyone any ideas?

cheers

scott

 

[Littlemonkey]

Hi scott, being lazy here, but what else have you got in there with him. any night time active dwellers, he maybe not happy with?

 

[scotty]

no,just been like this for the past days

 

[Littlemonkey]

anything new added??

 

[scotty]

nothing at all

 

[fluttermoth]

I sometimes have a fish do the same thing; tiger barbs mostly if I turn the room light on after the tank light has been put out.

I've never seen any ill effects from this and, as you say, the fish are always fine in the morning, so I can only assume that it's 'normal'; dreaming or something maybe?

 

[scotty]

my tetras are still doing the whirling thing when the lights go out at night,anyone else got any suggestions?

cheers

scott

 

[soybean]

When the tank light goes out is the room plunged into darkness? Suddenly turning the lights out can spook them the same as turning them on when it's dark. Try having a lamp near the tank that stays on for a little while after the tank light goes off so it isn't too much of a shock to them when the room goes black.

 

[scotty]

the kitchen main light is still on when the tank lights go out

 

[Gilli]

They just get disorientated at the sudden change of light and panic and take a while to adjust thats all. When you think about it the light would naturally fade very slowly so its not surprising their little fishy brains go nuts!!

 

[scotty]

the whirling they do continues most of the night,but in the morning they are fine

 

[Caprichoso]

the whirling they do continues most of the night,but in the morning they are fine

What about whirling disease? It causes them to swim in a corkscrew pattern. Although that doesn't explain why they would only be doing it at night...

 

[scotty]

i have looked into whirling disease,almost positive it ain't that,i was starting to think it may be some sort of genetic defect of some sort,it's got me totally baffled

 

[Caprichoso]

i have looked into whirling disease,almost positive it ain't that,i was starting to think it may be some sort of genetic defect of some sort,it's got me totally baffled

That is quite odd then. Maybe this is like the man that has all those fainting goats. Maybe your fish are fainting from fear of the dark