Very shy Zebra Danios

[tooldud]

HI, I have a new 55g that I am cycling with 4 Zebra Danios. It has be almost 2 weeks and the fish stay hidden most all the time. Last night when I walked into the room they were out in the middle of the tank. They all went for cover fast. One of them just slamed themselves into the tank side . Are they stessed? The tanks #'s are temp 75, ph 7.2, ammonia 1.0ppm, no nitrites, 20ppm nitrates. and the water is soft. The water is nice and clear. Any thoughts on what's up with the fish would be great.

Thanks
Tom

 

[OrionGirl]

Ammonia is a toxin. It burns gills and can kill fish. So yes, they are probably stressed. While danios can often survive poor water conditions, it is not good for them. Water to changes to keep the levels of nitrogen compounds as low as possible will help their health. But, another issue here is that fish get used to the level activity they are exposed to. If the room they are in is seldom visited, they won't be used to people walking around and will hide when it happens.

 

[bearyconfused]

I tend to agree in regards to the fish not liking it when someone walks by the tank if they are not used to it...my tank is right by my door beside my coach and for the first bit the fish would hide when i walked in...now they are so used to it they don't even flinch...plus the amonia is probably bothering them abit...good luck...i have 5 zebras (2 are longfinned) and 2 albino corys and 2 swordtails, 1 whitecloud, 1 neon (2 died) 3 glowlight tetras...so much fun to watch and so relaxing...