Easily Scared And Jumpy Fish

[newfishaddict]

I have reposted this because it is a new topic....

I have some lake inle rasboras (Inlecypris atropurpureus)These fish are very jumpy and very easy to scare! When I turn lights on or off especially....I do try to adjust lights slowly so as to not shock them but they are still very jumpy and easily scared. I speculate that these fish are from the wild because of their temperaments. I have seen one become so scared when I turned on the lights( and I did approach the tank slowly and turn on a dim light first) that it just lodged itself within some plants and appeared dead! but when I looked at him thru the glass he wiggled free of the plants and then swam around apparently fine, is this unusual? another time when I relocaded the fish one was so scared he was found floating upside-down in my new tank in the drift wood; when I moved the wood he swam away and has been "fine" but very skittish for 10 days now.... Can anyone give me some pointers on how to deal with these "skittish" fish? They are in a 55g with lots of current and swimming space....

 

[cujoho78]

You might try to create some hiding places for these fish to hide in when you walk by the tank or turn on the lights etc. I had some skittish fish, but made some changes and now they are all much better and don't skitter away when i walk by or look closely at the tank. It's all about making them feel comfortable.
*Edit. forgot to mention that some types of fish like to be kept in schools for that very reason. You might want to research those fish to see if they prefer schools. If you have the room, you might add some more to make a school large enough to give them some feeling of security.

 

[Griz]

Are there tankmates? A group of similar sized, gentle, schooling fish might help them feel more at home. Or as suggested, more of the same. How many rasboras do you have?

 

[kevinf]

Are there tankmates? A group of similar sized, gentle, schooling fish might help them feel more at home. Or as suggested, more of the same. How many rasboras do you have?

I have 4 rasboras , if the store gets more I would increase to 6 perhaps...I have 5 Denisons Barbs and I will move them to the tank soon, they are similar sized I have 5 of them.... In the tank now, besides the rasboras, are 11 rummynose tetras , 3 small cories, and one clown pleco....55g tank, with lots of hiding places down low but not up in the upper parts of the tank....

 

[BigC]

Try using floating plants such as Salvinia. this will cover the surface of the tank and subdue any harsh lighting effects also seems to have a more calming effect on the fish below.