I picked up a Helfrichi firefish on Thursday. The LFS got him in and gave me a call. I came right over and they kept him in the shipping bag for me so he wouldn't have to go through any unnecessary acclimation to their tank.
He seemed really healthy, and the only thing I noticed about him was that one of his pelvic fins was slightly torn (I assumed this either happened when they caught him to ship him out, or as the result of an aggressive tankmate).
He was fairly lethargic in the bag during acclimation, as can be expected. Anyway, I got him acclimated to my water and netted him into the tank. He swam around briefly, then found his way into the cave in my rockwork and sort of laid on the bottom, resting up against a small rock. He stayed like that for a number of hours. Other fish swam into the cave to explore, but he didn't budge. He also didn't show any interest in food as it floated by. Later that evening, he found his way into a very tight space inside a piece of rock where you can hardly see him at all (you can barely see his head from certain angles through a tiny hole in the rock). He has been in there ever since.
He's not breathing heavily, and he seems to be doing alright, but he will not come out of his little hiding spot, regardless of whether the lights are on or off. I assumed he was just a little unsure of the tank at first, but I'm starting to wonder why he's behaving this way. None of my fish have acted aggressively toward him... Perhaps he's trying to rest so he can heal his fin.
Anyway, my main concern is that he's going to stay in there and starve himself. I'm target feeding the area by squirting some mysis into his little hiding spot, but I have no way of knowing if he's eating it. Tonight will be his third night spent in hiding. Anyone have any ideas on this one? I've never had a fish that acted this timid before.
He seemed really healthy, and the only thing I noticed about him was that one of his pelvic fins was slightly torn (I assumed this either happened when they caught him to ship him out, or as the result of an aggressive tankmate).
He was fairly lethargic in the bag during acclimation, as can be expected. Anyway, I got him acclimated to my water and netted him into the tank. He swam around briefly, then found his way into the cave in my rockwork and sort of laid on the bottom, resting up against a small rock. He stayed like that for a number of hours. Other fish swam into the cave to explore, but he didn't budge. He also didn't show any interest in food as it floated by. Later that evening, he found his way into a very tight space inside a piece of rock where you can hardly see him at all (you can barely see his head from certain angles through a tiny hole in the rock). He has been in there ever since.
He's not breathing heavily, and he seems to be doing alright, but he will not come out of his little hiding spot, regardless of whether the lights are on or off. I assumed he was just a little unsure of the tank at first, but I'm starting to wonder why he's behaving this way. None of my fish have acted aggressively toward him... Perhaps he's trying to rest so he can heal his fin.
Anyway, my main concern is that he's going to stay in there and starve himself. I'm target feeding the area by squirting some mysis into his little hiding spot, but I have no way of knowing if he's eating it. Tonight will be his third night spent in hiding. Anyone have any ideas on this one? I've never had a fish that acted this timid before.