jprime84

I had a lone zebra danio in my 38g that I never could catch. I caught all four of its tankmates, and I didnt think it was worth tearing down the tank so I could catch him. As soon as the net was in the water he would hide down in the corner.

Well I read this on another website, and wow did it work.

Turn the lights in the tank and the room off so that its totally dark. After a couple hours, head in there with a flashlight and the net. Turn the flashlight on and find your fish. I guess his eyes are not adjusted to the light yet, because he sat still like a deer in headlights while I scooped him up. I had spent 5 or 10 minutes at a time trying to catch him, and it ended up taking 5 seconds.

I put him in my 20g quarantine tank to make sure it stays cycled.

lorabell

lol...Im gonna try that next time ...with a hard to catch one!!!!

Beth1965

Thanks for the tip!

Amanda

That will def. come in handy!!

peacemaker92

Nice idea! I'll definitely try it. But the only disadvantage of this trick is, it can only be used at late night unless the room is really dark with curtains.

jprime84

Yeah, I did it at about 10:30 pm, it was pretty dark.

namehater

thanks for the tip, ive got one endler left in my 29g that i cant catch, maybe this trick will work for me!

eiginh

lol funny you said its dazed like a deer. Must of been a funny face. I'm glad you caught him/her and thanks for the tip!

Jaysee

I'll have to try that - I've killed a few fish trying to net them, and chasing them around till they're tired isn't good either.

I use a black net in my tanks with black backgrounds and find the fish much easier to catch than the green or blue nets.

Borisbbadd

Sometimes a hard to catch fish can really make a person feel foolish, time to even the playing field.

Thanks for the tip.

aquarist48

Hello jPrime. Hope you're doing well and thanks for the tips. I've never been a big fan of fish nets. For smaller fish I like to use a clear plastic critter keeper. You know the same ones that fish stores use that hang on the side of the tank while they are catching the fish. By using this it helps to relieve stress and doesn't allow them into the open air. Fish nets can be troublesome, I've had fish get stuck in them, and they remove body slime. Be sure to give the fish a dose of Stress Reliever (I use Nova Aqua +) slime coat additive once he's settled into the new environment.
I hope your fish are all doing well!
Ken

namehater

how do you catch the fish in that clear plastic thing? isnt it essentially a cup that has a hook for hanging on the side of the tank?

mare2009

..great tip! I understand the clear 'cup' technique also Ken. I was gathering water in the tiny test tube for my water test, and my little platy swam right in it! Our fish pals can be so silly and yet frustrate us, lol

aquarist48

Hello. Yes to NameHater. The fish don't seem to run from the critter keeper as they do the net. Maybe because it's clear. (my experience). As Mare has mentioned sometimes they will just swim into it and scoop it up. Cute story Mare!
Ken