Help

[Eleanor]

I purchased a tank a few ,moths above and initially had 4 platys in it, they seemed to stay more in pairs and after one of them died the other seemed to go into a depression, because of this I bought 4 more fish (Zebra Danios) everything has been fine up until recently when one of the plates who previously stayed with the other has started attacking it. I noticed this'll cause it had tears on its tail and fin and the other one kept chasing it. The zebras seem to stay among themselves however h
I have noticed that one of them seems to be chasing all the others away from one of them, all my fish are supposedly boys. Do you have any recommendations on what I can do because the platy seems distressed and is tending to stay at the bottom or top but away from this one particular platy who it previously couldn't get away from
I was also wondering if anyone had tips on sexing the fish-Thanks,
Eleanor

 

[FishkeeperLinz]

Hi.

There are a couple of things you can do -.

1). Remove the aggressor/s or the victim
2) Add more decor or plants so the fish has more places to hide.

How big is the tank? Could you post a pic of the tank and the fish? Perhaps there are some clues to be had. What's the temperature?

Zebra Danios should be in shoals of 6+ (10+ being ideal IMHO). I believe (and someone will correct me if I'm wrong), that they're softwater fish, while the Platies are hardwater. Do you know the pH, GH and KH of your water? If you don't have a eat for them,you can get a ballpark idea from your water company's website.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I agree with @FishkeeperLinz.

You can either get a test kit off of Amazon.com or check with your local water provider.

Any chance of pictures of your fish? You might be getting the genders mixed up.

 

[Salty&Onion]

Hi.

There are a couple of things you can do -.

1). Remove the aggressor/s or the victim
2) Add more decor or plants so the fish has more places to hide.

How big is the tank? Could you post a pic of the tank and the fish? Perhaps there are some clues to be had. What's the temperature?

Zebra Danios should be in shoals of 6+ (10+ being ideal IMHO). I believe (and someone will correct me if I'm wrong), that they're softwater fish, while the Platies are hardwater. Do you know the pH, GH and KH of your water? If you don't have a eat for them,you can get a ballpark idea from your water company's website.

You've got everything correct, but mised out on one thing.. danios need a 20 gallon long as they are very active fish. Anyhoo! I agree with you.

 

[FishkeeperLinz]

You've got everything correct, but mised out on one thing.. danios need a 20 gallon long as they are very active fish. Anyhoo! I agree with you.

I didn't miss out the information about the zebra Danios requiring a 20gal long - I was simply waiting for the OP to tell us the size of the tank first.. For all we know, she could have them in a 55gal.

 

[Salty&Onion]

I didn't miss out the information about the zebra Danios requiring a 20gal long - I was simply waiting for the OP to tell us the size of the tank first.. For all we know, she could have them in a 55gal.

Oh right! Stupid me! Lol. So sorry.

 

[FishkeeperLinz]

Oh right! Stupid me! Lol. So sorry.

I'd like to bet we've all jumped to conclusions at some point or another. Doesn't make us stupid.

 

[Salty&Onion]

I'd like to bet we've all jumped to conclusions at some point or another. Doesn't make us stupid.

Yeah. I'm making mistakes all the time lol

 

[kribensis12]

I'd concur with @FishkeeperLinz ; though I think the length of the tank for danios is less important as the water quality. I think ideally a longer tank would be better because in the wild they obviously have more space.

While water quality is always a concern, water quality is not going to start bullying. Honestly, I'd consider adding more danio's to keep them entertained with each other and less likely to be hanging with the platies. In addition, it might be helpful to add 1-2 more platies so that they too will be more likely to entertain one another.

 

[Eleanor]

Here ate pictures of my fish, could someone sex them for me? I added more ceramic decor and plants today but you can clearly see the rips on his fins (fish 2) the aggressor is fish 7

 

[Eleanor]

I also only have a 40l tank as I was told that she all I need however I will be getting a bigger one after all this is over now I've realized I need a bigger one

 

[Naughts]

Lack of space can cause aggression so your plan is good. The pictures are not really clear enough to sex the fish but i might guess 1,2,4 and 6 are male and 3,5 and 7 female.

 

[Eleanor]

Thanks,I will try and take clearer pictures now

 

[Byron]

Welcome to TFF, Eleanor.

Zebra danios require at minimum a 36-inch (90 cm) length tank. This is a very active swimmer, and any tank with less length is not going to allow the fish to be in good health. It would probably be best to return the danios if you can, since they are under attack and this only going to weaken them further and then you will have more problems with disease. Stress is the direct cause of 95% of aquarium fish disease issues.

Stress is not only caused by the attacks, but by having too few of the species (six is toouted as minimum, but it should be a few more), and tank space does impact fish and this is further stress.

Sort out the issues before more fish are acquired. Keep in mind danios are active fish so they cannot be combined with quiet or sedate fish. It is always wise to reaearch a species before acquisition, it can save a lot of stress to the fish and the aquarist. We are here to help you.

 

[Eleanor]

Okay, I have taken clearer pictues (took me a while lol) however they're in a different order. Once this corona virus situation is over i will be getting a larger tank and then more fish, thank you all so much for the help