Behavioral Changes Out of Nowhere

[benzjamin13]

Anyone ever experience a fish change its personality and/or behavior for no reason, but still seems healthy? I just got a Clown Knife back in February and after a week, it started to recognize me as its food source. So it would come up and out of its space to the top corner where I would drop one pellet at a time until it decides it's had enough and would swim away. It's been like this for over 3 months. For the past couple of weeks now, it never comes up and out as before. Looks healthy, water parameters are normal ( pH 7.8, Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0 Nitrate 5), but the last feeding before it started acting like this was when I decided to treat it to fresh cut Tilapia. That was the only change.

So I didn't feed it for a couple of days just to entice it to come out, but nothing. I would drop pellets into the tank and it would be gone by the next day, so I'm assuming it's eating. Not thinning and it doesn't seem to have any visible damage and/or disease.

 

[Roger Mcfish]

Maybe something spooked it? Is the tank in an area with traffic? Other fish in the tank stressing it out?

 

[Conchonius]

Something spooking it would be my guess as well. I have a featherfin synodontis that is normally outgoing, but it hid for days when there was renovation work going on in the neighboring apartment. I assume that all the drilling and hammering was strong enough for it to sense and decide that it's a potential threat.

Does it respond to bloodworms, or more tilapia? Maybe the regular pellets aren't cutting it anymore and it wants more treats.

 

[Roger Mcfish]

Something spooking it would be my guess as well. I have a featherfin synodontis that is normally outgoing, but it hid for days when there was renovation work going on in the neighboring apartment. I assume that all the drilling and hammering was strong enough for it to sense and decide that it's a potential threat.

Does it respond to bloodworms, or more tilapia? Maybe the regular pellets aren't cutting it anymore and it wants more treats.

The vibration of any loud noise from neighboring apartments during construction could have caused it. The knife fish start hiding when construction started?

 

[duanes]

I find this an interesting subject, in that many fish go thru personality changes as they age.
I have little to no knowledge of puffers though, excpt that they are commmon here in Panama, and I see salt water varieties almost dailly.

Because I mostly specialize in cichlids , some changes are obviously significannt, mostly with age.
It seems most cichlids go thru a shoaling or communal stage when young, thru or just after sexual maturity sets in,
at a point when an internal swtch goes off and they become loners, until breeding sets in, if they can survive the rigors of nature.


I am amazed though, that the wild cichlds, cattfish (and some other fish I net), become ¨tame¨(I know a bit too anthropomorphic) quickly, and learn to accept un-naturalfood, while others will starve themselves to death, unless the absolute perfect foods, and other conditions are met, or are offered food, only at certain times of day (knife fish, only at dawn or dusk).

And as said in posts above, where certain coddled/or tank raised fish will react to minor stimili so negatively, that they remain paranoid forever.

 

[tiger15]

I also keep mostly cichlids and notice behavioral change with age. Juvenile Jack Dempsey tend to to be outgoing and bold, always eager for food. As they age, they become shy, reclusive and skittish. Fish collectors also reported similar behavior difference between adult and Juvenial JD. My synspillium also went through similar behavior change with age, becoming more shy and skitish with age. On the other end, my Flowerhorn turned bolder with age, and Malawian Haps overnight turned from shy to aggressive at the onset of sexual maturity. It really depends on fish which direction it will change.

 

[benzjamin13]

Maybe something spooked it? Is the tank in an area with traffic? Other fish in the tank stressing it out?

Nothing would spook it. The tank is in my home office which is normally quiet with the exception of me coming in and out in the mornings and night, the occasional bathroom stop from my Mom, and my days off when I would do a water change and plant care which is just me in my office for an extended period of time

Maybe it's just going through puberty