Don't Understand Emperor Tetras?

[techen]

200L tank and it has tons of stuff in it.
 

 

[Baccus]

Sorry I missed most of the other stuff Techen, another thought to break up lines of sight for the fish is can you add some tall stem plants or val to the tank? Sometimes having some taller plants that the bullied fish can duck through can help break the aggression.
Food wise my tetras and other fish go crazy for Tetramin micro pellets, they float and gradually sink so all the fish have fun snapping at them. Some of my smaller fish also like defrosted daphina, and defrosted rinsed brine shrimp always go down well too.
But by far the firm favourite for all my fish is mozzie wrigglers, the fish love them and have a great time chasing them down.

 

[techen]

People keep suggesting tall stem plants and am working on it
 
Getting some mother plants too and so on to get a ton of cover in there.
 
And yea I was looking at different foods tonight

 

[gregswimm]

Yep more tall plants should help tons.  IME, vals are very easy to keep and grow like weeds.  If those are java fern in the front in the substrate; they should be mounted as the will rot.  I would also move the wood ~5-10" to the left.

The longer your fish are stressed, the more likely they are to get sick from anything they may have been exposed to at the LFS.

 

[David J]

Hi Techen,

I know nothing about emperor tetras but I recently put 7 lemon tetra in my tank and at first, there was one big male that bullied the rest. It had the other 6 herded in a corner and he would swim over to the right of the tank to the bogwood. Gradually a couple of the others would swim out but the big male immediately chased them back in. One night, the 2nd biggest male made a challenge to the big one. The big one chased him but he wouldn't give up. Normally they would just swim back into the corner straight away but this time they chased each other for about an hour. Eventually the challenger gave up.

This went on for about a week but over the course of that week it got gradually aggressive and seemed to start to tolerate the other fish but would still chase them now and again. Now they all swim happily together but the big guy still asserts his authority now and then.

I added some tall plants and I think it's calmed done even more but I don't know if that's because of the plants or if the fish have just taken time to settle.

How long have you had them in?

David

 

[techen]

I think just under a month now. I did move my tank and move stuff around in my tank so it might have reset them. Vallis don't grow well in my tank due to the very soft water I have, I  do have planned some stargrass and some other stuff.
 
Anyway, You sound like you had the same issue as me David. My one big male chases them away everytime they get close. So maybe if I give it time they'll give up.

 

[Chad]

Wouldn't it be much better to work out why and what's causing it. Then work out a system where all the fish can live happier in the tank?

Yes, this is a great husbandry practice which in my opinion we should do even when our fish aren't having aggression issues. Aquascasping is more than just to make a tank pretty. Done properly it can minimize or eliminate problems and help the fish thrive. Of course tank size is part of the equation.
 
For example I have an orchid dottyback and a purple dottyback in my tank. In a smaller tank with less rockwork these two fish would rip each other apart but because the tank is large enough and there is plenty of rockwork for them to stake out their own territories they don't fight at all. So, as you suggest, working out a system works really well.

For Emperors (Nematobrycon palmeri) I have found they like lots of plants with many tall plants that arch over the top and dapple the lighting. This seems to calm them.

So, going with the idea of creating the right system for them, and looking at the photo of the tank, I would say it's too open for them and too bright. Lots of tall background plants that can grow right up and over a bit like a val. Below is an image I randomly swiped off Google that demonstrates what I'm suggesting.

 

 

[techen]

As I said before I had vallis in my tank and had no luck growing them and stargrass didnt' seem to go so well but I could always try again.

 

[Chad]

Val was just one suggestion of the type of plant. Pick any tall and arching plant you can grow or give frogbit or water lettuce a go. It's the idea behind it rather than the plant itself that's important.

 

[David J]

I got frogbit and the lemon tetras certainly spend a lot of time near it. They seem to love playing around in the hanging roots. Maybe that is a distraction to all the aggression because all 7 play in it happily. It's quite nice too and multiplies quite quick. I have soft water too and this has grown from 6 plants 3 weeks ago to having about 10 now. Might be worth a try.

 

[gregswimm]

I think just under a month now. I did move my tank and move stuff around in my tank so it might have reset them. Vallis don't grow well in my tank due to the very soft water I have, I  do have planned some stargrass and some other stuff.
 
Anyway, You sound like you had the same issue as me David. My one big male chases them away everytime they get close. So maybe if I give it time they'll give up.

Remove the big male.  Problem solved.  You may be able to introduce him later on when the other males get situated.