Fish are not really really as active as I would like

hawk82 · Apr 29, 2022

I wish my fish would be more active. When I look at tanks on youtube the fish are always moving. I was wondering something is wrong, or I just have lazy fish? Clown sits up by the powerhead all day, Banggie Cardinal just kinda floats in one spot, Royal Gramma stays in a cave and peeks out, Midas Blenny sits in his barnacle, Flame hawk hopes around from rocks and sits on the mag float, and Melanaurs wrasse just explores in the caves and cracks all day. Is that normal?

vetteguy53081 · Apr 29, 2022

hawk82 said:
I wish my fish would be more active. When I look at tanks on youtube the fish are always moving. I was wondering something is wrong, or I just have lazy fish? Clown sits up by the powerhead all day, Banggie Cardinal just kinda floats in one spot, Royal Gramma stays in a cave and peeks out, Midas Blenny sits in his barnacle, Flame hawk hopes around from rocks and sits on the mag float, and Melanaurs wrasse just explores in the caves and cracks all day. Is that normal?

other than wrasse, yes you have fish that typically hang out and my Banggai is active in the evening and at night. Most you will notice wake up when food hits the tank

Lavey29 · Apr 29, 2022

Some are swimmers, some are floaters and some just like a nice hidee cave.

Miami Reef · Apr 29, 2022

hawk82 said:
I wish my fish would be more active. When I look at tanks on youtube the fish are always moving. I was wondering something is wrong, or I just have lazy fish? Clown sits up by the powerhead all day, Banggie Cardinal just kinda floats in one spot, Royal Gramma stays in a cave and peeks out, Midas Blenny sits in his barnacle, Flame hawk hopes around from rocks and sits on the mag float, and Melanaurs wrasse just explores in the caves and cracks all day. Is that normal?

You chose the least active fish possible. lol

Here’s what you actually need for active fish: chromis damsels, flasher wrasses, dartfish, tangs (if tank is large enough).

So yes, it’s normal that your tank currently appears stagnant.

How big is your tank?

hawk82 · Apr 29, 2022

Miami Reef said:
You chose the least active fish possible. lol

Here’s what you actually need for active fish: chromis damsels, flasher wrasses, dartfish, tangs (if tank is large enough).

So yes, it’s normal that your tank currently appears stagnant.

How big is your tank?

Well darn lol, I guess I just picked the lazy ones. Its a 40 breeder, so I dont think I will adding anymore fish to the mix.

DaJMasta · Apr 29, 2022

Turn off your pumps for a bit and see what they do. My busiest times in the tank are when they think they're going to be fed (also pumps off for me), but the shy ones that stick to caves seem to like to come out in the evening, especially when the flow is low.

They'll also immediately hide some of the time when you're anywhere near, so maybe setup a camera that lets you view from a little way away (like a webcam or something), and see if anything comes out when you're not as close.

I do think the behaviors you describe are normal, though, but if they've only been in there a few weeks or a month they could get somewhat bolder in the coming few months.

davidcalgary29 · Apr 30, 2022

You can add colour and movement with interesting inverts such as urchins (and really, a tuxedo urchin for that size of tank), xenia (as long as you're willing to isolate it on a rock and make sure it doesn't become invasive), and red macro like halymenia.

You've already received some great suggestions for more active fish. You shouldn't discount radial or dwarf whitespotted filefish, either -- they're almost never still, and zoom around the upper water column all the time. A captive-bred orchid dottyback pair or a captive-bred lemon damsel might add colour, kinetic energy, and beauty to a tank, although some people continue to note aggression with them.