another red tail issue

L

lemans81

AC Members
Dec 24, 2006
27
0
0
45
Independence, Mo
I have a semi aggressive red tail shark, he has harassed my tetra and somewhat my barb. So I added 4 serpaes, and 4 cherrys to the tank and now....the red tail is just having a fit chasing all of them....one at a time he goes after each one. Then i got to thinking about it, I see him eat algae to some degree and I add hiroki(misspelled I know) sinking wafers, tropical flakes, shrimp pellets but I never ever see him eat any of those.
He looks fat and healthy, but what should he be eating other than algae and above foods...that he doesn't eat?
Is there anything left to do but get rid of him over the aggressiveness?
 
hmmm

you'll need some flour, salt, pepper, an egg (beaten), cooking oil, and a sturdy frying pan.

what? it's a catfish. . .
 
It looks more like a carp to me and carp taste terrible, I could send it to the friends tanks where the CAE went. The reason we got rid of the CAE is because he would harass the red tail, then the red tail took over....maybe 3 months of CAE harassment would help him out.
 
Red tails are quite territorial. They are also very intolerant of their cousins and IME tend not to like most barb species.

They are very good at becoming the boss of a tank. Then tend not to shy away from too many fish.

On thing I have found over the years with them is that they need a cave of some sort to call their own. A small teritory in the tank to live and defend. Otherwise they end up taking the whole tank as their territory and make everyones life miserable.

I have kept them for years and nothing they seem to do amazes me anymore.
I had one who use to swim up the current of an AC500 and sit inside the filter. It was his cave. It took me months with the water level down low enough to make him for get the fillter and move into the nice new rock formation I made for him.
 
He has a cave and he goes there between his breaks in harassing the tetras...mainly the original one. I have heard that peas are good and maybe he wants more food?
 
o update, the serpae's all gathered around my full grown single serpae and he has happily taken lead of the clan with zero fights.
The cherry barbs have all rallied around my old cherry barb, but he seems disinterested in helping them if anyone chases them at all, maybe he thinks he is too old...lol

I went to the store and bought a giant tree stump thingy(fake not real) I added it and it serves as a wall the red tail won't cross at least yet....he also seems calmer now because all the cherry barbs have moved to the far side of it......On a happy side note it also gave my blue gourami about 10% more of the tank for his territory(the red gave it up...odd) so now the blue has about 35% of the tank and red gets the rest...the red tail wouldn't dare mess with the gourami's. So for now the fish schooling+new rock has made the red tail semi passive.
 
Red tailed black sharks, are from the carp family...as for feeding them and your tetra, try some frozen blood worms or almost any live worms (tubiflex, black worms, etc...). My red tail and tetras love 'em.
 
glad to hear it solved your problem for now, but don't be surprised if he snaps again one day ...they are really moody and unpredictable.
 
My red tail is completely uninterested in anything food wise I put in the tank. But he is big and has grown a ton in the month I have had him. I see him going over all the plant/decor in the tank eating algae. I put sinking wafers in and he could care less. I am going to try cucumber I have heard its good too or lettuce. I can't find live worms at any of my lfs, they have frozen.

Every other day I feed them freeze dried bloodworms and everyone in the tank goes nuts...except for the redtail and the corys.
 
BucJason said:
glad to hear it solved your problem for now, but don't be surprised if he snaps again one day ...they are really moody and unpredictable.
Click to expand...

i agree..... solved the short term problem. as for the eating if he is growing and looks fine he must be eating something. i wouldnt worry much.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom