I have a lot of experience with ghost knifes and I can help you with this. Yes, it is a nocturnal fish, and yes specific lighting will yield a quick and drastic improvement. But depending on what's in that tank (live plants for example), you may not want to go that route.
As is the case with many fish, if you read about these guys their often branded as aggressive. However, in my experience, I would hardly give them that title. A BGK is initially going to be extremely timid but also extremely intelligent, in comparison to the majority of its tankmates.
As long as he is not the smallest fish in the tank and doesn't get bullied, eventually you should see him come out and become accustomed to the feeding process. Like cichlids, they will quickly learn that when the tank lid opens it means food. Now eventually, these fish grow very large. Once it feels like it can roam the tank without disruption (again, this comes down to his tankmates), he will happily swim around while feeding and even skim around the tank in normal lighting. I have never found them difficult to tame to the point of eating out of your hand. Again, you just need to watch them closely because if there's any bullying going on, it will stay hidden all the time and only come out to scavenge for food when it's dark.
As is the case with many fish, if you read about these guys their often branded as aggressive. However, in my experience, I would hardly give them that title. A BGK is initially going to be extremely timid but also extremely intelligent, in comparison to the majority of its tankmates.
As long as he is not the smallest fish in the tank and doesn't get bullied, eventually you should see him come out and become accustomed to the feeding process. Like cichlids, they will quickly learn that when the tank lid opens it means food. Now eventually, these fish grow very large. Once it feels like it can roam the tank without disruption (again, this comes down to his tankmates), he will happily swim around while feeding and even skim around the tank in normal lighting. I have never found them difficult to tame to the point of eating out of your hand. Again, you just need to watch them closely because if there's any bullying going on, it will stay hidden all the time and only come out to scavenge for food when it's dark.
