9 replies to this topic

[Cawdor]

I have kept synodontis multipunctatus in my 8ft tank for a while together with their host fish, no problem. I had the tank sectioned off to give a smaller section to the neolamprologus multifasciatus colony. That colony just kept growing and growing and eventually individuals started to migrate into the area of the "big" fish. No problem. I have a few flowerpot caves in the tank for the cuckoos and they crowd in them like no tomorrow, they love em. I could see the shellie's territory growing by the areas of mounds of gravel.

 

Now I always knew from watching the shellies, they can move gravel like no tomorrow, efficient little workers day and night.

 

So last night they must have gotten together and hatched an evil plan to get more territory and get rid of those pesky cuckoos. What did they do? THEY BURIED THE CUCKOOS ALIVE!

Yep, one of the most inhabited flowerpot caves was mysteriously missing, I noticed it just now. I also saw that territory much "hillier" than usual. So I dug down and found the cave, along with the rotting corpses of 9 cuckoos. Ouch. How much is a breeding adult worth? 50-60 bucks? I don't want to think about it.

 

I thought I'd pass this on so people know this can happen. I didn't think fish would be this stupid to let themselves be buried. I was wrong

 

Thankfully I still have some offspring in another tank and a few that chose a different cave.

 

 

[dicky7]

Unbelievable Tim  sorry  for your loss ... WoW

[malawiman85]

Little monsters, who would have thought!
What a story... fish keeping sucks sometimes.

[sandgroper]

That's the great thing about fish keeping, always learning. Thats bad luck Tim but a great story , thanks for sharing.

[Peckoltia]

Bad luck on losing your Cuckoos mate.

 

But that is one hell of a fish story. Thanks for Sharing!

Edited by Peckoltia, 17 April 2015 - 10:46 AM.

[MrLeifBeaver]

Cheeky Shellies!

[Westie]

Wow reading that I was quite suprised. Maybe some fish suffer from "Small Man Syndrome"????

[Cawdor]

Thanks guys. Well I certainly never heard of this happening so I thought I'd share. The cave still smells of dead fish, it's quite disgusting actually.

[LexAgate]

Omg I heard on the new someone was trapped in a plane buried in luggage (those shellies) what little sh*ts!<br /><br /><br />Sent from my iPhone usin

[goldenswimmers]

That's a crazy story...this is something you would probably rarely see in a fish tank but would happen in nature and no one would know any the wiser...wonder if it is a "tactic"  ...sorry for your loss mate but thanks for the great story..watch them shellies hey..little armies slowly building up