Hippo Tang in the dark

**fishcounter** · 06-22-2006, 10:59 AM

Well everyone, my tank has gotten through its initial cycle.

I have had it running for almost 1 month. The water levels have been stable for a few days now. So, yesterday I got my first fish! She is a beautiful hippo tang. She is 2.5" long, has great coloration, and is loving the algae on my rock! I have started a feeding program for her that consists of Nori, brine shrimp, Mysis shrimp, and Formula 1 small pellets. My question is about the way she acts when i turn on the lights.

I am only turning on the actinics right now to allow here to adjust. I don't want to turn in the MH's for a little while. When I do turn on the actinics, she is alright for a minute, but then she makes her way to the corner of the tank, presses her nose against the glass, and swims up about 4 inches and the down 4 inches. She does the over and over in the corner until I turn off the light. When I do, she is completly fine again. She swims around, eats, and plays in her little cave she found. I think that the light intensifies the reflection on the glass and its just confusing her. Anyway, what should I do? Should I turn on my lights and just let her get used to it, or keep them off for a while?

Thanks, and I will get some pics up soon. Oh, I also got 5 turbo snails.

**Amphibious** · 06-22-2006, 11:18 AM

fishcounter

I'd give her a day or two to adjust to her new environment. Turn on your Actinics as you described and then your halides later. Establish a routine and she will get used to it. Remember there are no "Actinics" in the ocean. That's a new light to her and it may cause confusion and disorientation.

Keep us informed.

Dick

**CarmieJo** · 06-22-2006, 09:02 PM

Hi Eddy,

As soon as you have your tang aclimated to life in your tank post a picture!

**gwen_o_lyn** · 06-22-2006, 09:20 PM

I agree with Dick- sounds like your fish is trying to get out of the glass box and a little confused. She will adjust soon.

**fat walrus** · 06-22-2006, 10:18 PM

Yep, Amphibious has got it nailed.

V · 06-22-2006, 11:13 PM

maybe have another light source near by, to break up the flood of actinic. i dont know, & can speak for fish, but actinic alone hurts my eyes. i have my trigger only under actinic, he doesn't seem to mind, but your tang variety are more sensitive to the world around them!

**fishcounter** · 06-24-2006, 12:19 PM

Yep, here is a pic of the little beauty. Sorry about the image quality, I am still very new at photographing fast moving objects.

Any tips on what i could have done to improve the quality of this image?

V · 06-24-2006, 12:23 PM

kinda like the fastest moving fish in the hobby, maybe when its stoped to feed for abit, i dont know, trial & error for me, & frustration at times

**Amphibious** · 06-24-2006, 12:27 PM

There's nothing harder to take a pic of than a fish that doesn't want his mugshot. Bright lights, fast shutter speed, auto setting on digital camera, I've tried them all and the thing I found that works for me is patience and swearing at the little bugger. Swearing is optional.

Dick

V · 06-24-2006, 12:30 PM

lol
sound travels futher in water

**wildeone** · 06-24-2006, 01:52 PM

I assume blues are skittish fish to begin with. Mine has been in the tank for 3 weeks and anytime I approach, into a rock he goes. Just the opposite of the clowns which race around to where I am, well just because they think I have food.

It's like when I was a kid, my brother always tell a story that I was so ugly they had to tie a pork chop around my neck to get the dog to play with me! Stupid brothers...

***Rob*** · 06-24-2006, 02:55 PM

Originally Posted by Amphibious

There's nothing harder to take a pic of than a fish that doesn't want his mugshot. Bright lights, fast shutter speed, auto setting on digital camera, I've tried them all and the thing I found that works for me is patience and swearing at the little bugger. Swearing is optional.

Dick

same here...
best thing is to just sit there with there camera ready until the fish decides it wants to get its picture taken..

V · 06-24-2006, 05:58 PM

definately sounds about right! although my tangs never hid when i entered the room wildman, on the flip side, i dont even think they cared i was there at all!your fish could have been spooked alittle too much as a youngling

**fishcounter** · 06-24-2006, 06:08 PM

my tang is actually very responsive to me. Shes not shy. She knows when I am going to feed her because I everytime I lift my arm to the top of the tank she rushes up there waiting for some shrimp.

***Rob*** · 06-24-2006, 06:30 PM

mine are responsive to me, but will hide from everyone else...

its funny that they can actually recognize me, from other people.
sine my tanks are in the basement, they dont get regular visitors like they would if there were in the living room or something

**CarmieJo** · 06-24-2006, 07:28 PM

My fish all rush up when my HUSBAND approaches the tank! I guess they think he feeds them better treats!

V · 06-24-2006, 07:31 PM

carmie, bet u feel real walm & fuzzy about that one hey!

**fat walrus** · 06-24-2006, 09:26 PM

i read somewhere that if you wear the same colored shirt everytime you feed the fish, they will become devoted to you only.....if you wear different clothes, they are only responding to a shape.

V · 06-24-2006, 09:42 PM

that sounds interesting, but i believe it goes futher than colour!
i believe some species can really define your facial characteristic. esspecially the bigger species of fish!

**fat walrus** · 06-24-2006, 09:50 PM

Originally Posted by veriann

that sounds interesting, but i believe it goes futher than colour!
i believe some species can really define your facial characteristic. esspecially the bigger species of fish!

true, but that's only when you got your face up to the glass. when you are feeding, they only really see your torso area. your face is hard to see throught the refracture or the water surface...particularly a reef tank with vigorous surface rippling.

V · 06-24-2006, 10:03 PM

my tanks feeding zone is at my face height, fish an not silly,i believe they would feel u coming through stronger vibrations before seeing u even with all the tank chatter, like any repetative sound its found in most case u'd block the sound out sub-conciously! so first que, if they indeed hear u through vibration, then the overall all body shadow, then facial reconition & "feed firings of the brain" then ur big ugly head being warped by aggitaged surface tensions. pushing a turkey baster in their general dirrection like your going to use it to milk them. if i as a fish, id prob hide at the start too....lol

**fat walrus** · 06-24-2006, 10:49 PM

gee, now i'm worried. i will approach the tank like the worm in the movie DUNE.

**wildeone** · 06-24-2006, 11:37 PM

Only my Blue Hippo is skittish, my yellow eats out of my hand.

***Rob*** · 06-25-2006, 12:17 AM

well, my tank is in the basement, on a cement floor, so i would imagine the vibrations are a minimum. but anytime anyone goes down there except me, they all hide..

clothing/color hasn't seem to matter...

maybe they trained with yogi and they can sense me..

**sailfin** · 06-25-2006, 01:16 AM

Perhaps fish even have their preferences: sometimes they just don't like you. When my blue tang was in quarantine at my fish guy, he apparently was never seen, preferring to hide in his little hole in a piece of live rock. The FG hardly ever caught a glimpse of the little tang. It was to the point that the said rock had to be brought along with the fish since he would not come out of it. About 20 mins after my fish guy left, the fish came out and swam around to investigate his surroundings and be instructed into the ways of the community by the sailfin. He's always out at meal time, joining the crowd in the feeding corner and although he is skittish at times, he is generally quite sociable. So I have two hypotheses: he either needed the presence of other fish to regulate his behaviour or he didn't like the fish guy

Ann