Why Is My Syno Featherfin So Shy?

[TheDood326]

All he does is hide in my drift wood and like all featherfins he is amazing in color and i wish i could see him more often

when i was getting him ready for my tank and while i was handling him when all the sudden he jabbes me with his dorsal fin and made me bleed at the time i had no idea what the hell it was but i later relized that he has a very sharp spine at the top of his dorsal fin

 

[oakes]

Ouch, i bet you don't make that mistake again!
These guys are best caught and transported in plastic containers due to the spines.
They do like to spend alot of time in their cave or under driftwood, it's just their nature. But as he settles in he will come out more, especially when there's food about. They can be territorial, and are often kept with cichlids. They grow pretty big and need a large tank, and have a very long life span.
Very unique fish, i like them alot, hope you enjoy him!

 

[three-fingers]

They are nocturnal, mine comes out to feed but other than that doesnt come out much during the day.

I put a dim moonlight over the tank so I can see him at night though, when he is very active.

You can make a moonlight for about £10 out of the neon lights they use to mod pc cases, check the DIY section, I highly recommend it .

 

[cheesy feet]

Mine are out all day long and all night long...I would get another 1 and see if that livens him up.

 

[three-fingers]

Don't your two fight at all?
Mine was fiercely territorial when I had other synos.

I guess you have a considerably bigger tank though .

 

[TheDood326]

Don't your two fight at all?
Mine was fiercely territorial when I had other synos.

I guess you have a considerably bigger tank though .

yeah mine always gets in fights with my kori and pleco whenever it bups into him or enters his hole (my syno stays in a big hole in my drift wood)

 

[Spishkey]

hope you have a large tank! featherfins get big! mine is in a 2 metre long tank now, he is roughly 25cm long! as they get bigger they become less shy, mine is out all day and hounds my oscars!

 

[Jim Curtis]

25cm! I have two! I thought they only got to 12cm! I've had mine for 5 months they were about an inch long when I got them they are already around 3 and a half inches. They never hide.

 

[Davo86]

25cm! I have two! I thought they only got to 12cm! I've had mine for 5 months they were about an inch long when I got them they are already around 3 and a half inches. They never hide.

I had two for just over a year or so, in that time they got around 6 and 7.5 inches,
They where always out in the open swimming around but the aggression between them did worsen as they grew and in the end I decided to rehome them both

 

[cheesy feet]

Don't your two fight at all?
Mine was fiercely territorial when I had other synos.

I guess you have a considerably bigger tank though .

They occasionally have a chase, but not often, although when I first got them they did this a lot more...My other synodontis occellatus hangs around with them, but is much shyer.
They don't like it when a big cichlid comes close though, and chase them away.