Jumping Swordtails? Yeah, right.

mindsore

AC Members
Mar 13, 2011
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Oakland, CA
My LFS got a huge shipment of Neon and Red Wag swordtails on Monday, and though my heart is set on those blood reds and kois, these guys were looking nice. So I picked up a pair of neons and a female red wag.

Got them acclimated and in the tank around 3pm today, and boy these fish are shy. I don't think 9 cracked out danios were helping the matter. Slowly but surely, the swordtails began to venture out and explore their new home, nibbling at the algae and curiously checking out the other fish.

I noticed mama Neon was the most spooked, always in the back of the tank and quite still. I figured she'd just take her time. In the meantime I'm reading the most regretted fish thread (hilarious and sad stories), and there is a complaint or two about jumping swordtails. I start remembering that the red wag was trying to jump out of the hanging container they were acclimating in. I remember reading other warnings about this, but I heard that about my danios too, and I've never seen them catch any air. Just in case I throw a wash rag on the back corner of the tank, which has about a 2x4" gap.

:thm:

The rest of the top has a gap of MAYBE 0.25" around it. This is at about 12am. The new kids seem to appreciate the darkened corner of the tank. All three are chillin there.

Around 12:20am I look over at the tank, wondering how the new kids are doing. I can see the Red Wag and papa Neon kicking it around the bottom of the tank. I enjoy the way they kind of hover around.

Oh, where's mama? Probably back behind the filter lip, where I saw her earlier.

No.

It's dark, so I go and grab a flashlight from across the room. I peer back into the tank with the little lamp, and still can't find her. I go around all sides of the tank.

:eek:

Nothing.

I come back around and I see something under my couch. "No way..." I'm thinking.

It was mama Neon, UNDER my couch and a good 4 feet away from the tank.

:swear:

I was literally exclaiming "ohhhhhhhh noooooooo! c'mon girl, you can make it" out loud to myself as I scooped her up (she flipped a little, thankfully) and dropped her back in the tank. I really hope she makes it. She could have been out as long as 20 minutes. She went right back to her spot in the top back, looking ready to try it again.

Now the whole top is covered with a towel until I can make a better cover. I thought I was too cool for school, but...

:headshake2:

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Maybe the fish is very stressed out.
 
Hey FishBoss! I was gonna say Tha Tank is my hometown, but I thought that might get confusing. I'll just say I'm from San Jose, too hehe.

Yeah, I figure she's bugging out from the transition... this morning all three of the swords are still pretty much being the same... the male neon and female red wag are just slightly more curious and active at the bottom of the tank, mama Neon is hiding behind the hardware in the back of the tank. She tried to jump again when I was moving to feed them...

I wonder if the danios are making things worse for them... as annoying as danios can be, timid they are not.

Anywho, if the new fish aren't having an easier time in the next day or two... I will probably exchange the female neon and maybe just offload all the danios at the same time... if I can catch them.
 
swordfish are known jumpers. a lid with minimal gaps is essential.

For sure for sure. Now I know... luckily didn't have to lose her to find this out. Finding useful information online can be a ******... there is so much subjective experience (which is totally valid and valuable) that is stated as objective fact (which is just lame and annoying). But I've read enough personal accounts of jumping swords in the last 24 hours to know mama Neon is just being normal.

Yeah, try that with a dragon fish... Good luck! ;) my dragon jumped out a lot!

Welcome to AC, sherlock1315! I am not sure if you are referring to arowanas or dragon gobies, but I hear they are both jumpers, too.

And they both have pouty faces. :mad:
 
That's amazing how far away you found her! I hope she feels better soon. I once had pulled a newly added sword that wasn't doing well into a hospital tank/bucket, and I learned this lesson too. The water surface was about 5 inches below the top of the bucket, so it was some serious vertical.
 
I've always wonder what the evolutionary advantage of an aquatic creature jumping out of the water was... seriously, your a fish in a stream somewhere, you gonna jump onto the nearby rocks and tan yourself? Honestly...

Hope the fish makes it! I've had fish jump out of my tanks and onto the sadly cold and hards cement floor, most didn't make it but I have had lucky survivors...

~Travis
 
well i have some blue pearl swordtails in a 29 gal without a cover and none of them has ever jumped out

Well lucky you! BLUE swords that DON'T jump. x2 ;)

That's amazing how far away you found her! I hope she feels better soon. I once had pulled a newly added sword that wasn't doing well into a hospital tank/bucket, and I learned this lesson too. The water surface was about 5 inches below the top of the bucket, so it was some serious vertical.

Yeah seriously! Luckily she was in view though, because there are tons of little nooks and crannies all around the tank that I definitely would have lost her in. Thanks she's doing quite well now! They're all much less shy already, too. I'm thinking about getting another female today or tomorrow... maybe trade out some more of the danios.

I've always wonder what the evolutionary advantage of an aquatic creature jumping out of the water was... seriously, your a fish in a stream somewhere, you gonna jump onto the nearby rocks and tan yourself? Honestly...

Hope the fish makes it! I've had fish jump out of my tanks and onto the sadly cold and hards cement floor, most didn't make it but I have had lucky survivors...

~Travis

Haha Travis! I wonder if it's because in the wild they can get more flying insects above the water line..? But as a startle response it is kinda self-defeating. Sorry to hear about the ones that didn't make it, too. Fish Keeping might turn me into a straight up vegetarian, I'm such a sucker for these guys.

PS @aquariacentral... censorship? For reals? I guess there are kids here... but I was kinda shocked to see my post edited, and no of course I didn't read the terms and agreement thing, so it's probably something I shoulda known. Just sayin'. ;)
 
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