Suggestions for fish removal

[RalphN]

Good evening all. I fell into the trap of purchasing some pretty little yellow with black stripes damsels that have grown into monsters. I need to remove them and soon. Have tried a fish trap but the they stay far away even after the trap has been in the aquarium for a good while. We all know how difficult it is to net a fish in a reef tank. Has anyone every gotten drastic and emptied most of the water into containers to get the fish out and then put all the water back. Is this a safe plan or will my growing corals suffer? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[C4ctus99]

Good evening all. I fell into the trap of purchasing some pretty little yellow with black stripes damsels that have grown into monsters. I need to remove them and soon. Have tried a fish trap but the they stay far away even after the trap has been in the aquarium for a good while. We all know how difficult it is to net a fish in a reef tank. Has anyone every gotten drastic and emptied most of the water into containers to get the fish out and then put all the water back. Is this a safe plan or will my growing corals suffer? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Strainers sometimes work depending on tank size, I’ve chased fish with my hand into a container or strainer and just pulled it out carefully

 

[RalphN]

Sounds like it might be worth a try.

 

[1112-425XL]

I've removed pajama cardinals and a red striped angel using two hands with a net in each one. But Damsels are definitely some of the hardest fish to catch.