Catching a Clown

[fastrd400]

I have a fairly large Saddleback clown in my tank that I need to get out. I have had a fish trap made from a plastic bottle in there for close to a month now. Not sure if he is really smart, or really stupid as he will not go in it. I have had most all of my fish in it at one point or another, except him. Any other ways to try and catch him, short of taking out all the rock?

 

[Wolverine]

If you don't need him out immediately, train her. When you feed the tank, put the food into a specimen container and put that into the tank so the opening is sideways. The food will drift out of it. The first several times you do this, all the fish will be skittish. After a while, they'll figure out that this means food, and they'll start swimming closer and closer to it each time. Eventually, they'll swim into it. When your big clown does, you just sweep her out.

This can be done with a net too, but I prefer to use specimen containers.

 

[RtReef]

I like this idea of training. I too have had the bottle trap in to try and catch a semi-aggressive tomini. Everyone swims around it except the tomini.

 

[fastrd400]

If you don't need him out immediately, train her. When you feed the tank, put the food into a specimen container and put that into the tank so the opening is sideways. The food will drift out of it. The first several times you do this, all the fish will be skittish. After a while, they'll figure out that this means food, and they'll start swimming closer and closer to it each time. Eventually, they'll swim into it. When your big clown does, you just sweep her out.

This can be done with a net too, but I prefer to use specimen containers.

That is basically what I am doing with the bottle trap. He will swim right up to the opening, but not go in. Instead, he tries to eat the food through the bottle itself :headwally:

And I have a pair of Black Ice Clowns that I want to get out of my frag tank, and in to the main display, so the quicker, the better.