Clown Knife Question........

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joeytoe

Semper fidelis
MFK Member
Sep 10, 2005
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Canton, Massachusetts USA
Im back with another question about my Clown Knife, My knife seems to like to hide all the time. Do they not really like light? All the others that Ive had over the years have swam around like everyone else.

Ive even sat like 6 ft away from the tank in the dark an he doesnt really swim around, except once an awhile up to the surface an then back down to hide.
:confused:
 
I know some clowns are more shy than others. What kind of fish is he housed with? Also, how long have you had him?
 
I had a black ghost knife fish and all the research I did on it said that they were very sensitive to light and he hid most of the time when I had the light on. Perhaps clown knife are the same, they are the same family after all.... Not sure though. Just thought I'd offer my 2 cents :)
 
blacktip said:
I know some clowns are more shy than others. What kind of fish is he housed with? Also, how long have you had him?

Hes in a 120gal with 2 4 line cats, a marble cat, 2 firewmouths, a red terror, 7 bala sharks, an 3 plecos. Ive had him over 7 days, Ive seen him chase some of the others outve where hes hiding to.
 
Great questions blacktip...I was gonna ask the same things....I have had a couple of knife fish...they always seemed to hide behind things, and only come out to feed and gulp some air...I did have this awsome little knife fish...it was labled a "pom pom" knife...that was the coolest knife I ever had, or seen, I can't seem to find them anywhere...He was just only 5-6" and was a grayish brown color, it almost looked like an african knife, but I know it wasen't one of them...He swam all over the place, killed on of my green scats...we called him the pitbull...lol...it was a mean little sucker...He would swim right in front of the ARO's face...and some how the ARO never ate him...untill one day, he was missing....I think he taunted the ARO one to many times...lol....and became a midnight snack... :( I was very sad.....I wish I could find another one.....

Jen
 
seven days isnt that long of a time -- he could still be getting used to his new surroundings clown knifes aren't the most active fish in the world especially when the lights are on -- dont get discouraged yet - he might by shy but id give him some time
 
My clown knife hides a lot, only comes out to eat. It knows when the lid opens, food is probably going in:) Sometimes it will venture out but hides most of the time. I still love them, its more exciting to watch them when they do come out because you dont get to see them very often. KICK ASS FISH though!
 
Sounds to me like your knife will be fine. It's good to hear that he is defending his chosen spot. Over time, he may become more and more comfortable with his surroundings and if he does, you'll see him more frequently.

One more question, how big is he? I know that from my experiences with them, they became less shy as they got larger.
 
i agree with black tip, they get less shy as they grow. i have 3 clown knives. one is 12" and always in plain view the other one is 7" who hides behind a root and the other one 12" only comes out during feeding. when they were a lot smaller (4") i go for days without seing 'em.
 
blacktip said:
Sounds to me like your knife will be fine. It's good to hear that he is defending his chosen spot. Over time, he may become more and more comfortable with his surroundings and if he does, you'll see him more frequently.

One more question, how big is he? I know that from my experiences with them, they became less shy as they got larger.
Hes a good 6"s Maybe a lil bigger, all my other ones I got when they were smaller(around 2-3"s. But when I saw the tank this guy was in I had to get him out.

Ive just been a lil off edge with this one as hes not as active as the ones I used to have, but atleast now hes eating more(unlike when I first got him). An I didnt want him to end up as wasted $$$$$$$$ that I hoped would grow into a kick@ss fish.

Thanks for all the coments .
 
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