Do fish appreciate the company of other fish?

[pudgeking]

Do some fish appreciate the company of other fish of a different species? Would a single fish in a tank ever get "lonely." What do you think?

Of course it is hard/impossible to say for sure. Sometimes I see people saying "I want to get a tankmate to keep my fish company" or something like that. This is usually anthropomorphism or just them wanting more fish, but who knows? In some cases, there can be a symbiotic relationship between certain kinds of fish, but outside of that I guess I am inclined to say "probably not." However, sometimes two fish of different species will get along royally, and will seem to become buddies of sorts. Also, some shy fish will tend to come out of hiding more often if there are other peaceful fish swimming about in the tank. Maybe having other fish and movement in the tank will provide more stimulation/excitement for a fish that would get really bored by itself.

Any stories of interspecies "friendships" that would lead you to believe that they appreciated the company?

 

[ECW]

I think it depends on the fish. If you ask my Flowerhorn I would bet he would say positively no seeing he likes to beat the living S#^&! out of any fish/thing including female flowerhorns and my arm when I change his water... I think you made a good point in saying that having other fish and movment in the tank providing more stimulation and excitment for fish that would get bored by themselves. Does a fish get lonely though? Maybe more bored? I don't really know.

 

[skjl47]

Hello; I do not think that fish being "lonely" can be known or determined, as least after fifty plus years of watching I have not been able to. Circumstances over the decades have found me with singleton fish of many kinds sometimes in a tank with no other fish. I wondered about it for a time, but have not found it to be an issue.
I have kept a lone zebra danio in a tank for many weeks and had it do fine. I put a group of additional zebras in with it or it into a community tank with other zebras and they tend to swim together at times. I suspect that these and other schooling fish have a natural tendency to move in groups as this is a survival tactic against predation. As I look over to a community tank right now I do not see the zebras or the other fish that I have in species groups schooling at all. They are all very calm and sort of roaming as individuals. Schooling may well be a stress reaction.
I imagine some will project their own personal feeling into the issue and that will not be a uniformity of opinion at the end.

 

[pudgeking]

You are probably right, and as I said, "it is hard/impossible to say for sure," but I do think that it is an interesting subject for speculation. The question is not about schooling fish or fish that like to be kept in groups of its own species, I am talking about interspecific interaction.

 

[scalesandfins]

I can tell you for sure that gar like company. My gar act totally different when there is more than one in the tank. Way more active

sent from below the water line

 

[ecoli73]

A schooling or a shoaling fish will have less stress with fish of their same kind; likewise normally shy fish will act more boldly with addition of dithers...a bounded pair of cichlids are less likely to have its female die if they have target fish.

Don't like the human quality of like/appreciate/friendship etc though


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