revclyburn
Active member
like the title says, any ideas how to get these trouble makers out of a reef tank without tear up the tank?
edwin
edwin
ideas for catching fish/damsels
- Thread starter revclyburn
- Start date
i got lucky, mine went down my overflow, and now he resides in my sump, where he will stay and eat and be happy.
other than that, maybe a fish trap, but i personally never had luck with one
sorry i couldnt be any help.
those anthias you got should be tough to catch too, you should round them up at the same time....just a thought.
good luck.
other than that, maybe a fish trap, but i personally never had luck with one
sorry i couldnt be any help.
those anthias you got should be tough to catch too, you should round them up at the same time....just a thought.
good luck.
revclyburn
Active member
not trying to catch the anthias
edwin
edwin
Get the smallest fish hook you can find, file off the barb, and fish them out.
I am not kidding. We did it quite often at Hanover Pet when we needed to. Its ALOT easier then dis-assembling the reef. And if you remove the barb, its easier on the fish.
I believe the hook we used was #20 for trout fishing (i could be wrong on the number). Just get the absolute smallest one. (it WILL be hard to bait the hook, but believe me it does work)
I am not kidding. We did it quite often at Hanover Pet when we needed to. Its ALOT easier then dis-assembling the reef. And if you remove the barb, its easier on the fish.
I believe the hook we used was #20 for trout fishing (i could be wrong on the number). Just get the absolute smallest one. (it WILL be hard to bait the hook, but believe me it does work)
revclyburn
Active member
Can't do that, my wife would flip and she's already crazee. Doesn't want me to remove the damsels, since they've been in there for a while. Have to tell her over and over again, the angel she wants, will get picked on by this big damsel. She didn't think so, till she noticed it this morning, we runs the tank, and needs to go, imo.
And, I fish, and may have a trout hook or 2 I can use, but, I have a gravel filter too, and the tube will work just fine. I have it just sitting in the tank, and the fish I want has been in and out of it several times today. I will bait it up again and see how far in he goes. if he goes far enough in, he's done. Come and get him Alti, lol!
edwin
And, I fish, and may have a trout hook or 2 I can use, but, I have a gravel filter too, and the tube will work just fine. I have it just sitting in the tank, and the fish I want has been in and out of it several times today. I will bait it up again and see how far in he goes. if he goes far enough in, he's done. Come and get him Alti, lol!
edwin
nanoreef16g
Active member
I used one of the small clear plastic pet carriers, I think they call them Pet Pals? I just put in some food, opened the little door at the top and eventually the fish went right in and I shut the door behind them. I caught a purple tang, a banded coral shrimp and a hogfish that way.
GROSSR
Active member
I put food into a clear acrylic box. I left the box in for a couple of days, same spot, it never moved and put some food in the box, tang went right in fed happily a couple of time and then I remove the box with the fish in it.
Fish are very suspicious of new things in their environment, you have to give them time to realize this new item is not a threat.
rich
Fish are very suspicious of new things in their environment, you have to give them time to realize this new item is not a threat.
rich
There's a thread on RC describing cutting a plastic coke bottle in half and inverting the top so it flows into the bottom closed half. You need to connect the two halves together - tie wraps work great for this. Put food inside, submerse in the tank, leave for several minutes and voila, you will catch any of the smaller more naive fish. I built one and it works very well.
I probably did a lousy job explaining the construction, so if my explaination isn't clear I would do a search in RC for "trap" as the keyword. Good luck!
I probably did a lousy job explaining the construction, so if my explaination isn't clear I would do a search in RC for "trap" as the keyword. Good luck!
revclyburn
Active member
Good idea Rich, but I don't know the other tank occupiers will take that, namely the anthias, being that they seem so sensitive to everything. I'm trying to keep my tank as close to optimum as possible. Meaning, more water changes than I normally would do. And as of this moment they aren't eating because of ONE BIG damsel that keeps shadowing them. I want to keep them but I may have to let them go to someone that can handle them till another time. I'll get some from some where I guess.
I really can't drain the water either, nothing to hold the water in at the moment. I am trying something now, I have a tube from my python gravel cleaner to capture that beast in. He goes in and out of it when I put food in it. He's a bit skidish, but if I just wait, I'll catch him. I don't want to take the tank apart ot get him. But, hey if I don't have him out by Thursday, I will just do some aquascaping.
Any clues on how to feed the anthias?
Edwin
I really can't drain the water either, nothing to hold the water in at the moment. I am trying something now, I have a tube from my python gravel cleaner to capture that beast in. He goes in and out of it when I put food in it. He's a bit skidish, but if I just wait, I'll catch him. I don't want to take the tank apart ot get him. But, hey if I don't have him out by Thursday, I will just do some aquascaping.
Any clues on how to feed the anthias?
Edwin
I never really liked that idea. In concept, its great, in practical usage, its a PITA. Just think of me trying to drain 300 gallons somewhere temporarily. And even then, the time spent draining / filling it back up would inevitably irritate many of the corals. Even someone with a 75g tank would need at least two rubbermaid brute garbage cans (and they aren't cheap).
Ed, make yourself the described trap, but when the wife's not home use the fish hook idea. You can tell her you trapped him. Sure, its a simple white lie, but it WILL make your life immensely easier, and the damsel is almost always the first fish to take the bait (greedy little pigs that they are)..
revclyburn
Active member
Now ur not suggesting that the Reverend lie are u? LOL
Rev. Clyburn
Rev. Clyburn
revclyburn
Active member
i'll get them, one way or another, like I said, if I can trap him by thursday, I'll just do some aquascaping.
edwin
edwin
Harlequinreef
Premium Member
I agree with the small hook method. We use size 28 nymph hooks for removing fish from the 1600 gal tanks at trop. Get the hooks at a flyfishing outfitter along with some 2 or 4 pound test line and a pair of tweezers. Thread a mysis shrimp, add a small split shot sinker, and hold on tight. Its a lot less stressful on you and the fish than chasing them around with a net for an hour.
concept3
Premium Member
Okay, since it's been said, do the hook thing..... It worked for a 6" purple tang that somehow made its way into my 75 gallon display. (He is taking a vacation while I'm re-doing my friend's 300 gallon tank, he's in another tank now without SPS so he's easier to catch)
I was able to net him since he was tethered to a trout hook. I've also caught 4 engineer gobies this way.
As far as feeding anthias, this is how I do it:
It's a piece of hard tubing with silicone tubing on the other end. Think of it as an extended pipette. They are shy at first, but give them a couple of days to warm up to you.
I was able to net him since he was tethered to a trout hook. I've also caught 4 engineer gobies this way.
As far as feeding anthias, this is how I do it:
It's a piece of hard tubing with silicone tubing on the other end. Think of it as an extended pipette. They are shy at first, but give them a couple of days to warm up to you.
