Gourami=Eye eaters?

[UncaBret]

Any body else heard that dwarf gouramis will eat the eyes out of other fish?

I found one of my powder blue females dead last night, no marks or anything other than one eye missing. But, that could have been done after she died, right? Other than the DGs there are white clouds, kulhis and otos. I can't see any of those being the culprit.

Nitrites 0
Nitrates 5-10
Ammonia 0
Ph 7.2
Temp 78
Gravel vac/water change 20-25% weekly

 

[patoloco]

I think kuhlis can do that. eing omnivourous and bottom dwellers, anything lying in the bottom is food! And an eye is like a creamy dessert. (YUCK!)

 

[YoFishboy]

Just about any fish will go for the eyes after a fish dies - must be a delicacy - hehe. Many fish also target the eyes of other fish when they defend themselves. In fact, I was just at a lecture by Dr. Ronald Coleman at my cichlid club, and he spoke of this aspect of behavior when cichlids are defending eggs/fry. In fact, he had even experimented with dummy cichids in his lab, with the eye moved to a different part of the body - the defending cichlid would still attack the eye, even when it was moved near the tail! Interesting stuff!

 

[JimmyOrangeSeed]

Yea, my girlfriend put 8 dwarf gouramis in one tank when she first got her fish tank. Of course, they all died but they would always eat the eyes out of the dead ones. But, all fish do this. Like patoloco said, its dessert

 

[UncaBret]

I think kuhlis can do that. eing omnivourous and bottom dwellers, anything lying in the bottom is food!
. (YUCK!)

Sorry. I meant killing one by eating its eyes. I can't see a kulhi killing a DG.
I was wondering more about the cause of death being the loss of an eye.

 

[pran]

I think kuhlis can do that. eing omnivourous and bottom dwellers, anything lying in the bottom is food! And an eye is like a creamy dessert. (YUCK!)

aggread

 

[TKOS]

I agree that the fish most likely died first. Any healthy fish would be able to ward off or at least run away from a fish attacking its eyes. The only alive fish I have seen loose an eye was a very sick one that was floundering along the bottom on its side (this was in a petstore not my tank).

I personally have had little luck with gouramis and as of yet can't figure out what cuases their deaths. Healthy one day, dead the next after only a year or so. The other fish keep swimming along.