How to remove a Niger trigger?

[matttaylor]

Well the great experiment has yielded less than desired results (as Paul said might happen). The little bugger has started attacking my tangs and now he has to go. Any ideas other than removing all my rock? I've tried to trap him already but no dice. I'm thinking fishing him out will be the easiest way, or baiting him with a damsel, but he won't go anywhere near a trap.

So the results with this trigger are: reef safe, but not tang safe.
He hasen't done any damage to any inverts, but i like my tangs a lot more than him.

 

[yoboyjdizz]

how big is he? I usually have success with two nets another person helping you out always is a plus too. When you feed does it come close to the top of tank, that could be a good time for someone to snatch it up while your feeding.

 

[bored4long]

I'm sorry it didn't work out, Matt. We were all curious how your experiment would go. Best of luck getting him out. I have a net you are welcome to use.

 

[Matt_Wandell]

I've found triggers (along with wrasses and dottybacks) to be some of the easiest fish to lure into traps. What kind of trap are you using exactly? I've had good luck using a large clear plastic bag to catch fish at feeding time, rather than a net. You can usually get them to swim right into it before they realize they're even caught.

If this doesn't work out, I'd try a small barbless fish hook and line. It'll be tough because they tend to chew and nibble at their food rather than swallowing it right away, but with patience you can set the hook.

 

[MandM]

Drain most of the water from the tank. Seriously. Anthony Calfo did a thread on this and I won a $20 prize for the solution that caught the infamous evil blue damsel.
Get a couple of big CLEAN rubbermaid tubs or hefty garbage containers. Siphon out the tank water into the tubs. As the water gets lower it will be more and more difficult for the trigger to hide. Once you have him, pump the tank water back into the tank, being careful not to stir up the substrate. This sounds drastic but it is much easier on the livestock than chasing around with a net and trap.

 

[RasBobre]

I agree with Sheila.

I had a Yellowstripe Maroon Clownfish that a client wanted out of his tank and I spent a lot of time trying to catch it. With my final attempt, I drained the aquarium down to two to three inches and got the fish out in less than an hour.

A little low tide never hurts nuthin'.

 

[robertloop]

Hey Mandm. Turd Polisher? HA HA HA!! :lol: My wife and I got a good laugh out of that one. I'm pretty sure that describes my profession as well. Sorry for the thread hijack.

 

[matttaylor]

Congrats on the baby Mark and Mrs. Mark! Now it's time for pics of the "frag"!

I got the sob out about 2 hours ago. It involved shutting off the lights and moving half of the rock out of the tank, but he's isolated until tomorrow when i can trade him in. So if anyone wants a niger trigger for their fish only tank, he'll be around until after work tomorrow.

 

[C4SxM5]

damn, i was thinking about picking up a niger or blueline, but don't want them picking on my tangs.

how do your tangs compare in size to the niger?

 

[matttaylor]

My tangs, with the exception of the yellow which is bigger, are about the same size as the niger. And believe it or not my yellow tang is the most peaceful of the 5. The yellow tang is the only one to escape without injury from the trigger. My blue tang has a torn pectoral fin, my scopas has a chunk missing from it's dorsal fin, my tomini (meanest tang) is missing scales and has a chunk missing from his dorsal fin, and my chocolate tang has a torn tail fin.

I think the biggest problem is feeding time. The niger is faster than the tangs, and tends to steal food from them. They don't tollerate the aggression, especially the tomini. My tomini has to be the meanest tang i've ever had. He will attack any fish that comes within sight of him during feeding time.