Not So Good Americans

Nolapete

Nolapete

Monster Tank Builder
May 29, 2007
5,274
1
0
New Orleans, LA
American (Florida) flag fish are great on hair algae clean up, but that's about as far as it goes. These little guys are fin diners. Yes, they love to eat the fins of other fish. I came home today to find all of my longfin blue leopard danios missing their longfins. It even looks like the flag fish tore into the dorsals on the clown loaches as well. They are great little fish, but when their clean up job is done move them to a tank of their own. They get bored really fast.
 
Weren't you the same guy that kept claiming flagfish were peaceful and shy?
 
Im really sorry to hear what has happened to your fish.

I have kept many many flag fish with with no problems whatsoever as far as aggression other than at spawning.

If I may ask. What size tank and how many did you have?
 
I had some with my Bolivian Rams and had to move the Rams because the Flags were too pushy. Now the Flags share a tank with Endler's Livebearers. The Flags spend most of their time hiding in a bunch of java moss and seldom come out. But I notice several of the Endlers are missing big chunks of fins.
I have discovered these fish look and act more like a fish you would catch in a lake rather than a tropical fish. They would probably be better suited in a cool water tank with Goldfish and such.
 
I asked this question before - would flags be OK with Tiger Barbs. I guess the answer is YES based on that behavior.
 
vampie said:
Weren't you the same guy that kept claiming flagfish were peaceful and shy?
Click to expand...

They are peaceful and shy. They were completely stealthy with their fin dining. They never were openly belligerent. It's interesting that I had caught them in the act attempting to nip the blue spot goby's tail fin and the very next day they hit the buffet.

I suppose that once they run out of hair algae to clean they get bored.

There's only two other fish that could be the culprit in that tank, but I don't think that it's either of them. The black ghost or a 3-4" syno sp. catfish.

They are in a 10 gallon now awaiting more work.
 
I think they do their damage at night. Mine usually hide during the day. I did seperate my last pair, putting them in different tanks , and they seem to be less reclusive by day and less aggressive by night if kept singly this way rather that as a pair. From what I have seen,a solitary Flag fish is more active and more devoted to eating algae than when it has the distractions of other flags.
Bottom line: Flags are great algae eaters and not very aggressive when kept singly . They are also fascinating fish when kept as pairs or groups but you better have a large tank or a species only tank.
Just my 3 months experience.
 
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