Poly's and ornaments/hides

[Slayer2533]

I have noticed in multiple threads that almost no one has any kinds of hides for the poly's in their setups. Alot just have substrate and a completely open tank. Just curious why this is? Do polys not appreciate or make much use of large caves or hollow log ornaments etc? Or it just because these kinds of hides are sometimes ugly to look at? I understand that alot of members utilize plants and driftwood which looks really good and natural and provide some cover but it doesn't always allow the poly's to completely hide from view. What is everyone's thoughts on this topic?

 

[thefredpit]

I do provide hides I think the reason alot of people don't is sometime if you have hides it can promote aggression. I have a piece of driftwood they hide under and 4 other cave like decorations they also hide in my java moss and a pvc pipe

 

[Slayer2533]

I do provide hides I think the reason alot of people don't is sometime if you have hides it can promote aggression. I have a piece of driftwood they hide under and 4 other cave like decorations they also hide in my java moss and a pvc pipe

I also have multiple hides because I also keep a number of american cichlids who need a large number of hides to minimize aggression. I didn't know poly's are as territorial as cichlids. I think the large amount of hides is actually a good thing for them. My ornates and sens really enjoy hiding in the various large caves and logs around my tank.

 

[jaws7777]

I used to be evem though polys are less aggressive than most fish theres always one...or two lol

Had a few issues with territories. Once i removed them it improved. Even with my currenr group i have doubts. I'd like to add a nice big dw but theres one or two of them that i feel may act up...if it aint broke dont fix it lol

 

[Slayer2533]

I used to be evem though polys are less aggressive than most fish theres always one...or two lol

Had a few issues with territories. Once i removed them it improved. Even with my currenr group i have doubts. I'd like to add a nice big dw but theres one or two of them that i feel may act up...if it aint broke dont fix it lol

I see. I will keep an eye on it. If it gets out of hand I may try remove all ornaments and hides. On the american cichlid forums their is a raging debate regarding aggression and hides. Some people believe it is best to remove all hides to eliminate territories and others believe add a **** tone of hides to remove aggression and that it is harsh to the fish to not have homes of their own. Reduced quality of life etc. So far I have seen one of my ornates grab onto another's tail and hold on for a few seconds. It was actually a smaller one latching onto a larger one which was quite interesting. I was just about to go break it up when the smaller one let go of the larger one after a few seconds. Also problem for me is I kind of need a home for my large BGK.

 

[jaws7777]

I see. I will keep an eye on it. If it gets out of hand I may try remove all ornaments and hides. On the american cichlid forums their is a raging debate regarding aggression and hides. Some people believe it is best to remove all hides to eliminate territories and others believe add a **** tone of hides to remove aggression and that it is harsh to the fish to not have homes of their own. Reduced quality of life etc. So far I have seen one of my ornates grab onto another's tail and hold on for a few seconds. It was actually a smaller one latching onto a larger one which was quite interesting. I was just about to go break it up when the smaller one let go of the larger one after a few seconds. Also problem for me is I kind of need a home for my large BGK.

To be fair some fish are just jerks. I had an endli that no matter what i did acted like charlie manson.

Even with cichlids i think we assume we have more control than we really do.... what if two want the same hide ?


I have a bunch if cats in a different tank many more hides than cats but still fights broke out if ine particular spot....just a crap shoot. All you can do is try if it doesnt work remove them

 

[Slayer2533]

To be fair some fish are just jerks. I had an endli that no matter what i did acted like charlie manson.

Even with cichlids i think we assume we have more control than we really do.... what if two want the same hide ?


I have a bunch if cats in a different tank many more hides than cats but still fights broke out if ine particular spot....just a crap shoot. All you can do is try if it doesnt work remove them

True I agree you never know what to expect with fish. For now I will keep my hides as the aggression is manageable and quite low. If it gets out of control I may try removing the hides all together except for one pipe for ghost knife fish. Which if anyone tries to claim ghost knife fish will put them in their place lol. Did you ever try a poly only tank with hides jaws7777?

 

[Slayer2533]

Thanks for the input guys I just thought I would raise the question as I have seen alot of the poly community's tanks like jaws7777 don't have any hides and I never really saw it explained anywhere why that was the case. Now I know it serves a similar purpose to an agressive overstocked American Cichlid tank. To reduce aggression levels

 

[jaws7777]

True I agree you never know what to expect with fish. For now I will keep my hides as the aggression is manageable and quite low. If it gets out of control I may try removing the hides all together except for one pipe for ghost knife fish. Which if anyone tries to claim ghost knife fish will put them in their place lol. Did you ever try a poly only tank with hides jaws7777?

Itd hard to answer because it depends on what type of aggression and also cpuld have many variables, what happens in one tank can be totally different than what takes place in another.

My ornate was a jerk to smaller polys no matter if there were hides or not. But never messed with large polys.

Had a small pbb that was a butt hole with no hides at all.

The charlie manson endli chilled out when i removed the dw but eventually went back to being an ass.

Aggression is kind od complicated atleast ime. Sometimes is just a dominance thing where the aggressor nips at others to let them know whos in charge and isnt too serious. Right now i have an sp.tinkisso/dabola that took over as top dog and will occasionally nip, i feel that if i put a hide in or just a large dw she'll claim it and the aggression would get worse.

How long has your current group been together ?

 

[jaws7777]

Just to add another reason i stay away from allot of decor is injuries. Doesnt happen much with the smaller uj's but the larger LJ's would always get scrapped up smashing into stuff when they got spooked.

If the ornate is the one giving you problems tey and create a hide thats higher up in the tank. Even a large pvc pipe suction cupped to the glass will work. They like to perch maybe that will reduce the issues