Scissortail Dartfish

[MellowReefer]

I'm looking at getting a group of three from Diver's Den. Anyone have experience with these fish?

Do they ship well?

If it says it's an established trio, will they continue to get along in my tank?

 

[nicdu]

I recently got a trio from DD. They all looked ok the day of arrival, but one died the second/third day in, and he looked kind of rough. I imagine it must have been from shipping, b/c all of the other fish from that order (that are all in the same QT) look fine. I was really paranoid it was brook or something terrible like that, since the dead dartfish looked super rough with peeling skin. The other 2 are doing great, and are super cool. They are just chillin' like villians in the water column of the QT. I am really sad I don't have 3, b/c it would be so cool to see them always hanging out together in a 'school'. I think I will place another order for a trio from DD in a few months or so.

 

[Fishy 1]

I haven't kept them but have seen them in my lfs and they are very cool looking fish:thumbsup:

 

[MellowReefer]

Thanks for the replies. I decided to go for it. They will arrive tomorrow.

I did order one of these fish a while back but it came DOA. (not from DiversDen, another website not as good as LA). So hopefully I will have better luck this time Bought some ridiculously expensive zoanthids as well.

 

[3dees]

I have one that shares the same bolt hole with two zebra barred dartfish. I just wish they would spend less time in the hole, but it's cool to see them sticking their heads out when I get near the tank.

 

[MellowReefer]

I was hoping that with three of them they would have more confidence to be out in the open. My single purple firefish stays behind the rocks a lot. Funny thing is that when I first got her she was out in the open almost all day, then after I added my bristletooth tang (who is not at all threatening) she holed up in a cave for about a year, then a few months ago when I rearranged my rocks she suddenly was out in the open again, but now recently she's hiding in the back again most of the time. Oh well.

 

[MellowReefer]

So, I also had one of the three die the day after it arrived. But the other two are very healthy and stick together and I just added them to my DT yesterday. I was surpised that these fish hover near the very top of the tank, as I expected them to behave like my firefish who stays in the lower part. When the lights were going out (and I happened to be looking at the tank) one of them darted towards the back of the tank and made a splashing sound. Then I couldn't see the fish anywhere. Well this morning I look in the sump and see him in the refugium. This little fish is about the exact width of the teeth in the overflow and somehow got through and went down to the sump! I have to catch him out of there when I get home from work. Then I have to get some of that plastic netting and put it over the overflow teeth, what a pain its going to be to keep that from getting all gunked up.

Just wanted to share this if anyone is thinking of getting these fish.

 

[nicdu]

Also, now that mine are in the DT they are also out in the open all the time and only hide at night when the lights begin to dim. Very cool fish.

 

[MellowReefer]

Well I finally sealed up all the overflows with that plastic mesh and caught the escapee out of the sump and he reunited with his buddy right away and they are hovering in the open near the top of the tank. My other fish are pretty much leaving them alone already and my single blue chromis is hanging out with them like he's one of them.

Do yours swim only within an inch of the surface or is this just newbie behavior?

 

[nicdu]

They do swim pretty close to the top. Maybe 3ish inches down from the water surface. But I have a lot of flow in that top 1" so I think they found their flow speed happy spot further down from the top at 3".

 

[MellowReefer]

They are swimming lower now and seem more comfortable today. They do stick together most of the time. I wish all three had survived but a pair is still nice. I just looked at the description on LA and saw they can get to 5.5 inches long! Wonder if they usually get that big.

 

[CoralsAddiction]

One of my favorite fish. Active and personable. I traded mine in recently to LFS when I was changing tanks but contemplating one in the future.

 

[CoralsAddiction]

Mine was definitely more of a top swimmer. I had a pair of clowns with a tailspot blenny on one half of my 60 gallon and the scissortail had the other half of the tank all to herself.