Angelfish questions..

[woo]

Hi, this is my first post here so yes...

My tank finally finished cycling so I returned my 5 danios and in return, bought 2 angelfish, a female swordtail, and a platy. 26 gallon tank FYI and this is my first tank ever.

The swordtail and platy were pretty shy yesterday but now I've noticed that the swordtail has started to nip on the long dangly part (?? not the fin, I don't know what to call them) on one of the angelfish. Obviously I don't want anything bad to happen so should I be really concerned or should I just ignore the behavior?

I attached a picture just to show how long the fins (whatever they're called) are. Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Fluff]

I believe they are called the pelvic fins. I wouldn't worry but keep an eye on them to be sure the sword isn't causing any damage. I'm guessing it's just curious and not being malicious.

 

[TankGirl]

Welcome to Aquarium Advice, woo!!!

There are times when this behavior can become a problem, so be ready. These fins (almost like feelers) can be damaged and be permanently bent.

It may be that some more swordtails are in order to give the one you have some fish to interact with. If your platy is male it is possible he will pester the female sword, also, so swapping a male platy out for more female swords might be a good idea, assuming you have the space. Or, you could swap out the sword for more platies, with 2-3 females per male (if you don't mind the slight chance of surviving fry) or stick with all females.

Post the size of your tank if the idea of additional fish appeals to you.

 

[woo]

Yeah, I do plan on getting a few more platys/mollies in the future, I just didn't want to add too many fish at once. I am pretty sure my platy is a male so yeah..I'll remember to ask for females the next time I make a visit to the LFS. Thanks though.

P.S. - 26 gallons