It's the all new AquaFin movie. Action! Drama! Excitement! Starring Brick the Oscar(11"), Chip the Severum (~ 6-7"), and Boss the Blood Parrot (6+"). Coming to theatres near you. Don't miss it...tickets are available!
As top dog, Brick goes where he wants, when he wants. He bulls his way into every territory, breaks up fights, and is the 'benevolent bully' when the mood strikes. For the most part he likes to explore and play often squeezing into places he can't fit. He pretty much ignores the syno catfishes. They stay clear of him and Boss. He investigates every change in the tank the minute it happens. Nosiest fish ever. If I clean the glass lids he swims under my arm and taps it.
Boss is "second in command" and keeps the other fish in order. He and Brick have an "agreement"...you don't mess with me, I don't mess with you. They've been together since Brick was a baby. Brick will still test him occasionally, trying to bite the BP in the belly and sides. It never works, Boss is clever at making himself a tough target. He does side barrel rolls and will headstand. He'll avoid Brick when he charges, but doesn't really "run" and often invades Brick's territory as well.
Chip is the punk and pinball. He really has no territory and is constantly looking for a comfort spot. Problem is he always wants the areas that the other fish own. I give him credit for never backing down, but starting fights you can't finish makes little sense. His success against the tank muscle is a dismal 0 and forever. But he's tough and resilient. He has to be, with a BP 3 times his mass and an even larger Oscar. A month ago Brick took 3 chunks out of him for being a nuisance. Chip is still a nuisance (healed up completely in 5 days).
The syno catfishes Cash (5") and Rex (7") are a non factor. I'll see them scooting out on occasion but they pretty much hide. The Oscar ignores them and the Blood Parrot attacks them on sight. But they're healthy with no injuries and have plenty of space to get away and hide, so its not a real issue. At one time Boss and Rex had a "war" which lasted about 2 weeks. The BP wouldn't stop fighting so the Syno eventually backed down. Both got nicked. Rex originally had a war with Chip but it was brief, maybe 3 days. Boss has been super aggressive against the synos since he got scratched one time. He won't seek them out unless they show up in the open. Most of the fighting was during the 'settling in' period.
So the current drama is ongoing. Chip is 'allowed' to lease a small space on Brick's side. He's given limited swimming privileges and has to rest at the front of the tank near a vine on the floor. When the Severum gets tired of confinement he'll swim the whole tank. This works, but Boss is on the other side. So he can't really rest over there since Boss keeps him in the upper column. So Chip does the 'flare and dance' bit, looking for a fight? Boss shoots up like a cannonball and wants to lock up. Chip doesn't want to lock up, so his flaring doesn't do anything. Boss then bounces him to the other side. Sometimes Brick reacts and sometimes he ignores the other two. At times Chip is chased back and forth between the two. It's pretty funny, reminds me of volley ball.
The BP is not tolerant of sharing his turf like the Oscar. Weeks ago the Severum was allowed to stay in a small corner on Boss' side but that changed, not sure why. So once he got booted out that was it. I suspect Chip is desperately trying to reclaim this area but it ain't gonna happen.
So then the Severum wants to take on everybody. This makes even less sense because he can't lip lock effectively and doesn't have enough bulk to force the issue. He's grown and has good thickness for a severum but he's out of his weight class. I'll see him charge clear across the tank at Boss (and get chased back to where he came from). Then he'll track the Oscar and follow him like a shadow until Brick gets annoyed and runs him around. He's made aborted attempts to nip at Brick's tail (he seems to change his mind about it. Very smart). Brick will chase him for exercise in one big loop around the tank. Chip darts wildly nearly running into things before ducking in plants. What's baffling is that the Severum has plenty of space to go that doesn't cause problems with the other two but he chooses to 'start stuff' when its unecessary. He's determined to take over territories but it goes nowhere and he ends up with a split tail or missing scales. It's interesting to note that when Chip pesters Boss, Brick will go and chase Chip away from Boss' territory and back to his allowed spot (get over there !) Then Chip is forced back into his little area. So the Oscar puts the Severum back in his room when he acts naughty. Brick makes sure the tank is peaceful. Or else!
Pass the chips, gimme a beer. These fish are off the hook.
As top dog, Brick goes where he wants, when he wants. He bulls his way into every territory, breaks up fights, and is the 'benevolent bully' when the mood strikes. For the most part he likes to explore and play often squeezing into places he can't fit. He pretty much ignores the syno catfishes. They stay clear of him and Boss. He investigates every change in the tank the minute it happens. Nosiest fish ever. If I clean the glass lids he swims under my arm and taps it.
Boss is "second in command" and keeps the other fish in order. He and Brick have an "agreement"...you don't mess with me, I don't mess with you. They've been together since Brick was a baby. Brick will still test him occasionally, trying to bite the BP in the belly and sides. It never works, Boss is clever at making himself a tough target. He does side barrel rolls and will headstand. He'll avoid Brick when he charges, but doesn't really "run" and often invades Brick's territory as well.
Chip is the punk and pinball. He really has no territory and is constantly looking for a comfort spot. Problem is he always wants the areas that the other fish own. I give him credit for never backing down, but starting fights you can't finish makes little sense. His success against the tank muscle is a dismal 0 and forever. But he's tough and resilient. He has to be, with a BP 3 times his mass and an even larger Oscar. A month ago Brick took 3 chunks out of him for being a nuisance. Chip is still a nuisance (healed up completely in 5 days).
The syno catfishes Cash (5") and Rex (7") are a non factor. I'll see them scooting out on occasion but they pretty much hide. The Oscar ignores them and the Blood Parrot attacks them on sight. But they're healthy with no injuries and have plenty of space to get away and hide, so its not a real issue. At one time Boss and Rex had a "war" which lasted about 2 weeks. The BP wouldn't stop fighting so the Syno eventually backed down. Both got nicked. Rex originally had a war with Chip but it was brief, maybe 3 days. Boss has been super aggressive against the synos since he got scratched one time. He won't seek them out unless they show up in the open. Most of the fighting was during the 'settling in' period.
So the current drama is ongoing. Chip is 'allowed' to lease a small space on Brick's side. He's given limited swimming privileges and has to rest at the front of the tank near a vine on the floor. When the Severum gets tired of confinement he'll swim the whole tank. This works, but Boss is on the other side. So he can't really rest over there since Boss keeps him in the upper column. So Chip does the 'flare and dance' bit, looking for a fight? Boss shoots up like a cannonball and wants to lock up. Chip doesn't want to lock up, so his flaring doesn't do anything. Boss then bounces him to the other side. Sometimes Brick reacts and sometimes he ignores the other two. At times Chip is chased back and forth between the two. It's pretty funny, reminds me of volley ball.
The BP is not tolerant of sharing his turf like the Oscar. Weeks ago the Severum was allowed to stay in a small corner on Boss' side but that changed, not sure why. So once he got booted out that was it. I suspect Chip is desperately trying to reclaim this area but it ain't gonna happen.
So then the Severum wants to take on everybody. This makes even less sense because he can't lip lock effectively and doesn't have enough bulk to force the issue. He's grown and has good thickness for a severum but he's out of his weight class. I'll see him charge clear across the tank at Boss (and get chased back to where he came from). Then he'll track the Oscar and follow him like a shadow until Brick gets annoyed and runs him around. He's made aborted attempts to nip at Brick's tail (he seems to change his mind about it. Very smart). Brick will chase him for exercise in one big loop around the tank. Chip darts wildly nearly running into things before ducking in plants. What's baffling is that the Severum has plenty of space to go that doesn't cause problems with the other two but he chooses to 'start stuff' when its unecessary. He's determined to take over territories but it goes nowhere and he ends up with a split tail or missing scales. It's interesting to note that when Chip pesters Boss, Brick will go and chase Chip away from Boss' territory and back to his allowed spot (get over there !) Then Chip is forced back into his little area. So the Oscar puts the Severum back in his room when he acts naughty. Brick makes sure the tank is peaceful. Or else!
Pass the chips, gimme a beer. These fish are off the hook.
