Cardinals not schooling??

[bristlenosekarl]

Hello...
I had a problem with my cardinal tetra's not schooling which was rather frustrating. I have about 30 of them and it was annoying to see them all scattered around the tank not schooling.

I also had about 10 Neon's in there with them (from when I first set up my tank) and I wondered if the mix of Neons and Cardinals was the cause of this. So I decided that I would give them Neon's to a friend and see if this was the case.

I took all the neons out and the next day still the same...but I noticed 1 neon still hanging around so I got him out too. I came home from work yesterday and man they are schooling beautifully now!!! It's great to see them doing this and I can't wait now to get more cardinals...great little fish they are.

Just thought I'd share that with you incase anyone out there is having similar problems.

 

[CaitxSith]

can't really help but I know the fact that neons and cardinals or any other tetras don't school. just "shoal". shoal as in swim in groups. perfectly normal for them to separate. mine seperated too... until i added my betta. i guess they got scared and started shoaling again! oh and by the way, after a while, tetras stop shoaling or shoal not as much as they used to. simply because they're used to the tank and surroundings?

 

[jm1212]

when fish that are gregorious (swim in schools/shoals/ like company of others of the same species) separate from the group, they are feeling secure and relaxed with their surroundings. when fish school tightly, it is a defence mechanism to deter preadators.

 

[bristlenosekarl]

they aren't schooling in really tight bunch's...just more swimming more together and roaming around more. they definately looked more relaxed now which is great.

 

[CaitxSith]

nice! that means you have a healthy bunch!

 

[NinjaPirate]

Yeah. Adding an aggressive or atleast very active larger fish will induce more shoaling behavior. Same thing happened with my glowlites when I added my betta.

 

[BrkD]

My neon tetras are doing the same thing. When i first bought them back from the LFS they all school together.but after a few weeks they just scattered throughout my tank. i guess they feel secure enough to be on their own

 

[coupedefleur]

Maybe we need a sticky about schooling vs shoaling!

I wonder if putting a couple large harmless fish, like flagtail cats, would get them to shoal all the time, or if they get used to the larger fish after a month or two? I guess there's also the question of if it's good to add more stress for fish in captivity.

 

[Star_Rider]

schooling or shoaling..actually the terms are synonymous.


and the suggestion to add a large fish is correct. small fish exhibit the tight schooling/shoaling when threatened.

when they are relaxed they will swim about in a loose 'shoal' when completely relaxed from a threat single fish will break from the shoal.

it's pretty fun interesting to watch..I have a school of black neons (and a single neon) in a tank with discus..when I come in the room and the discus come from behind the driftwood the neons tighten up..when I drop food in ..they break up..even with the discus present. I believe the fast movement from the discus startles them .