Leopard Danio seems to be bullying Zebra Danio

[Lady Samsara]

I currently have 3 Leopard Danios and 1 Zebra Danio in my 10 gallon
tank. All parameters are within range. The other night I noticed
what looked like nicks in the Zebra Danios sides. It moves so fast it
was hard to see exactly what it was, but the skin looked marred. It
is not red or bleeding. Lo and behold, at the same time I noticed
one of the Leopard Danios was chasing it. It didn't look like it was
biting it but was chasing it round the tank. I also noticed the same
Leopard Danio chasing a smaller Leopard Danio in the same way. Now it
looks like the Zebra's tail is kinked somewhat, sort of going upwards
a little. I am wondering if this and the marks are a result of the
chasing. As a sidenote, I lost a Zebra Danio about a month ago. I
never determined what it had, one night it was shimmying and not
eating, and had a bent spine. I immediately quarantined it and
eventually euthanized it after a week.

The Zebra seems fine, is active and eating other than the marks on
skin and wierd looking tail.

Is it possible the Leopard is picking on it as it is the last Zebra in
the tank? Can they tell the difference? I have had these fish
together for about 9 months now. Should I remove either of the fish
for a time, or permanently?

I would appreciate any input...I tried a Google search but came up
with nothing that pertained to this situation. Thank you!

[Flash Wilson]

On 17 Sep 2003 09:56:09 -0700, Lady Samsara > wrote:
>Is it possible the Leopard is picking on it as it is the last Zebra in
>the tank? Can they tell the difference? I have had these fish
>together for about 9 months now. Should I remove either of the fish
>for a time, or permanently?

I have four danios - three longfin zebra, one shortfin leopard.
In a 2ft tank I also had the same problem. I thought the leopard
was the bully but when I isolated him the problems continued.
Turned out a zebra was the bully.

Anyway, I separated the bully in a breeding net for a little while,
an hour or two, then let him rejoin. He was better behaved. Worth
a try?

Problems stopped when I put them in a 4ft tank - either they had
enough space to avoid each other, or the other fish worried them
enough to give them something else to think about... no idea but
they seem fine now anyway.

Hope that helps!


--
Flash . o O ( www.gorge.org )

[NetMax]

"Lady Samsara" > wrote in message
om...
> I currently have 3 Leopard Danios and 1 Zebra Danio in my 10 gallon
> tank. All parameters are within range. The other night I noticed
> what looked like nicks in the Zebra Danios sides. It moves so fast it
> was hard to see exactly what it was, but the skin looked marred. It
> is not red or bleeding. Lo and behold, at the same time I noticed
> one of the Leopard Danios was chasing it. It didn't look like it was
> biting it but was chasing it round the tank. I also noticed the same
> Leopard Danio chasing a smaller Leopard Danio in the same way. Now it
> looks like the Zebra's tail is kinked somewhat, sort of going upwards
> a little. I am wondering if this and the marks are a result of the
> chasing. As a sidenote, I lost a Zebra Danio about a month ago. I
> never determined what it had, one night it was shimmying and not
> eating, and had a bent spine. I immediately quarantined it and
> eventually euthanized it after a week.
>
> The Zebra seems fine, is active and eating other than the marks on
> skin and wierd looking tail.
>
> Is it possible the Leopard is picking on it as it is the last Zebra in
> the tank? Can they tell the difference? I have had these fish
> together for about 9 months now. Should I remove either of the fish
> for a time, or permanently?
>
> I would appreciate any input...I tried a Google search but came up
> with nothing that pertained to this situation. Thank you!

I'm not sure if I've anything useful to add, but here are a few
possibilities. First scenario is that the fish being picked on is ill.
Other fish have a knack at sensing this and usually hasten it along.
Next scenario is that the Zebra is a she, and in a 10g, doesn't have much
hiding space from the boys in the tank. Another scenario is just typical
Zebra/Leopard danio behaviour of chase games, but in a small tank, it's a
bit amplified. For the last 2 scenarios, adding more fish (Zebras and/or
Leopards) or going to a bigger tank should mostly solve your problem. If
it's health related, then giving it a chance to convalesce elsewhere
would be a good idea. hth

NetMax