Added algae eaters but they are WILD swimmers!

Okay...maybe I'm a little like that thick skulled dad because I have to agree, somewhat, that before I just added water, threw the fish in and away they went living happily ever after. But I also have to agree that technology has come a long way since then. So here I am, on my first fish tank in over 20 years. I cycled it, added fish slowly, had babies even, added more fish, now I'm up to adding algae eaters.

Remember I work in the pet department of my local Wal~Mart and one of the few stores that still has fish tanks. I get to watch fish all day long. I know that these gold algae eaters are not normally wild swimmers, however, the four I purchased (I purchased 4 because I anticipated a few dying off) are wild swimmers! At first, all 4 were ALL over the tank all the time. Now, I'm down to two of them being calm and sticking around doing their job, but I still have two that are ALL over the back of the tank glass. It is like they are in love with the bubble curtain! They hardly ever leave the back wall but they are constantly zooming all over it, never in one place long enough to be doing any kind of good in my tank.

I have been feeding them algae discs just in case there is not enough algae in the tank for all 4 of them, however, they never seem to be the ones going to the discs. The platy's seem to be the ones eating the algae discs. So my question is, What's up with these gold algae eaters? They were from the new delivery to my store this past Friday so they didn't have any time in my tanks, they went from delivery bag to the bag I brought them home in.

Thanks for your help.
Angela

 

the plecos I used to have just chilled in the bubbles too they loved it! it must be like the jets in a hut tub for them?

 

you say you cycled the tank but you have ammonia?...you should have a 0 reading for ammonia and nitrites and under 20 for nitrates...see if you can get some prime at work and do daily water changes until the tank finishes its cycle...and it if has 0 readings and your info just isn't updated, maybe you are in a minI cycle from so many fish ... are they cories? otto's? and sometimes you have fish that just love the bubbles...goodluck with them!

 

Hey Shawnie

My information is not updated. There is zero amonia. I will update now.

The algae eaters are not plecos, they are not cory's and I'm not sure what an otto is. At the store they are just labeled Gold Algae Eater????

They aren't "chilling" in the bubbles, they are zooming all over the back wall all day long. I'm afraid they are going to stress themselves out.

 

can you get a pic? most of the info I can find says they are related/type of colored cae's and can be territorial..if it is them, they will only eat algae for a short period of time then they will start attatching to certain fish for their slime coat...they aren't community fish usually...so a pic might help us find out what they are for sure...

 

Is this it?

 

Agree with Shawnie.

Since this is Walmart, you probably have the golden form of the Chinese Algae eater.

They'll stop eating algae and get very aggressive as they grow (to around 5") especially towards each other.

 

My ottos have swim fests now & again, more so when they get into a new tank. Since they are new to your tank they may be just getting settled. As for more in for on Gold algae eaters...listen to these guys. A lots of catfish different sizes can be pretty aggressive.

 

Sounds to me like you got hold of a gold colored chinese algae eater. Nice little fish if given proper care. For a 29 gallon tank, one is all you should have. Anymore than that and they will squabble. They can be very active fish. I have 3 in my outdoor pond that I have had to bring in for the winter (the pond gets too cold for them). They are currently sharing a much overstocked tank with 2 plecos and a columbian shark. I have extra filters and do water changes every couple of days to keep them healthy. I will sit and watch them in the mornings. My gold cae is the boss of the two normal cae's, but my larger pleco is the boss of everyone. They can be voracious eaters and like the bottom feeder discs that have some meat to them as opposed to just algae wafers. They also eat my pond snails and the moss from the rocks. I toss in a shrimp pellet or 3 every once in a while too. They will either sit in a cave/hidey hole, or swim madly looking for a cave/hidey hole. You will need to have 2 caves for each cae plus one. I would suggest taking all but one back to the store and have two caves/logs for the one you keep to hide in/under. I don't have any problems with mine going after the goldfish in my pond, but then, mine have lots of hiding places and plenty of moss to eat. Here is a pic of my gold cae (all grown up after just 3 months in the pond!) Good luck with your cae's - they have lots of personality.

 

yes this is it!

And remember I bought four with the anticipation that 3 of them would die off because I wasn't sure the tank was quite ready. I shut the bubble curtain off for a little while and they all seemed to settle down. However, I need the bubble curtain because it is the main source of air. So they will stay there for now and if they get too big and none die off they will go to my dad's pond!

 

yes this is it!

And remember I bought four with the anticipation that 3 of them would die off because I wasn't sure the tank was quite ready. I shut the bubble curtain off for a little while and they all seemed to settle down. However, I need the bubble curtain because it is the main source of air. So they will stay there for now and if they get too big and none die off they will go to my dad's pond!

They will love the room in the pond - will you be able to bring them in for the winter? They won't survive if the water drops below 70 degrees farenheit.