Male Swordtail Bully

[Clarousel]

I have 2 male swordtails in my tank and recently one has started showing dominance over the other.

I didn't notice anything until I saw the other one always hiding at the bottom of the tank or inside the plants. Once I even thought he was dead cause he wasn't moving at all.

He seems very traumatised but he does come out to swim once in a while. Even the female swordtails may chase him a bit!

I thought of removing him from the tank and putting him in the pond but I worry the other gouramis and cichlids may attack him if he enter's their territory, plus the huge kois may frighten him even more. I don't have another tank so is there anything I can do? It's really painful to see him so scared and all

 

[blesser13]

Hey Clarousel!

I found a link for you, hope it help

 

[lilfishie]

what size is your tank? generally we only recommend 1 male sword per tank as they do get veyr nasty, saying that i have kept 3 males with 5 females in a 3ft tank with no problems

how many female do you have?

 

[Clarousel]

My tank's 2.5 ft long. I didn't know about them cause my dad got them for me as a gift.

I have 2 females in the tank.

 

[daleboy]

I have a similar problem but with female swords.
One of the other females is really picking on my Koi Swordtail and its getting to the point I will have to move her for her own safety.
Strange though as they got on great for the first 3 months.

 

[Clarousel]

I have a similar problem but with female swords.
One of the other females is really picking on my Koi Swordtail and its getting to the point I will have to move her for her own safety.
Strange though as they got on great for the first 3 months.

Oh dear D: Will you be removing her from the tank? My females are fine. Just the males having problems

 

[daleboy]

To be honest I think I will have to either that or I will remove the bully fish to another tank for a few days to see if it alters the pecking order.
I dont want her to be bullied to death.
She is a really nice fish it would be a real shame to lose her.

 

[Clarousel]

Oh dear has she's lost almost all her colour. That's serious stuff Hope she'll be okay after whatever changes you make!

 

[daleboy]

Thats her normal colour.
She is a really bright red and white when seen in the flesh its my bad photography that lets her down

 

[Clarousel]

Thats her normal colour.
She is a really bright red and white when seen in the flesh its my bad photography that lets her down

Oh! Wow! I've never seen one like that whoops my bad. Mine are all plain orange

 

[Dieses Madchen]

Thats her normal colour.
She is a really bright red and white when seen in the flesh its my bad photography that lets her down

Oh! Wow! I've never seen one like that whoops my bad. Mine are all plain orange

I added some females to my tank when the males started getting agressive. I have 3 males and 5 females at this point. It's still not the reccomended ratio, but it has cut down on aggressive behavior.

To be honest I think I will have to either that or I will remove the bully fish to another tank for a few days to see if it alters the pecking order.
I dont want her to be bullied to death.
She is a really nice fish it would be a real shame to lose her.

She's beautiful....is that a velvet wag in the back? I have a male that looks just like him

 

[daleboy]

It most certainly is.
I got him with the 125 ltr tank I bought around a year ago when I got back into fish.
He was delivered in a bucket of green water that was really bad and smelly, he was in bad condition but now he is perfect and such a character.
The female is in quarantine though it looks very bleak for her as she doesnt look like she will survive.
Shame but I do have 7 fry from her.

 

[Clarousel]

I did consider getting 2 more females but I have a feeling my tank is already overstocked. Not sure though.

 

[Dieses Madchen]

I did consider getting 2 more females but I have a feeling my tank is already overstocked. Not sure though.

How big is your tank, an how many fish do you have and their sizes?

It most certainly is.
I got him with the 125 ltr tank I bought around a year ago when I got back into fish.
He was delivered in a bucket of green water that was really bad and smelly, he was in bad condition but now he is perfect and such a character.
The female is in quarantine though it looks very bleak for her as she doesnt look like she will survive.
Shame but I do have 7 fry from her.

Maybe she will surprise you. I really do hope for the best. That's cool you have fry from her. I have a 10 gallon fry tank right now with 18 4 days old fishies in it. They are fun to watch.

 

[Clarousel]

I have 4 dwarf gouramis, 4 serpae tetras, 4 black neons, 4 swordtails, 4 tiger barbs and 1 neon tetra.

They are all relatively small. I don't know their exact sizes but none of them are larger than 3 inches.

Tank is 60cmx30cm. I have a pic of it here