hibernating clown loaches

[surf city baby]

I rarely see my two clown loaches. They spend their time stuck way up inside the peaks of the mountain in the aquarium.

I thought clowns were diurnal. Was I wrong? Why do they hide?

[OrionGirl]

How long have you had them? What else is in the tank, and what size is the tank?

In general terms, clowns will hide unless they feel comfortable, and they usually need slightly larger groups--3-4 fish--to be comfortable. If something in the tank picks on them, then they will hide more often. However, they are not primarily diurnal fish, so if you establish a dusk period--low light, I try having the room lights on, but not the tank lights, you may see them out more.

[mogurnda]

I have found that the clowns become very shy if their little world gets disturbed. It takes them a while to become outgoing, but they eventually do. I have seen the same pattern repeatedly: they hide for a few months after being introduced into the tank, to the point that you worry about them, then they decide it's all OK, and become the biggest pigs in the tank.
They are also shy in bright lights. When I redid the lights in the 25 gallon to 55 watts, they became extremely shy. Now I have a 13 watt dawn/dusk light for a few hours in the morning and evening, and they're constantly out whenever the main light is off.
I have always kept them in pairs, just because a school of clown loaches is a lot of biomass, and they seem quite content.

[Mantis_22]

Im guessing I am going to add some more hiding and shading places in my tank today knowing they dont like the light...

[mogurnda]

More hiding places is always a good idea. If a fish has a place to run, it's more likely to be out. Kind of counterintuitive, but has always worked for me.

[punch]

When I rearranged my tank my clowns hid for about a month!
I was getting a bit worried about them but there out and about now.

[luke_85]

i put in a hollow log ornament and didnt see em for 2 weeks and i thought they were dead but they just like having places to hide so i modified my tank to have little caves here and there