Aquascaping Effects on Fish

[theotheragentm]

What happens to your fish when you adjust the scenery in your tank? I noticed when I pulled a lot of my stem plants and tossed them, my Panda Cories school together much more. Do territories get reassigned when you do a big enough change to the tank? Is that a bad thing to do?

 

[pitt420dude]

Good topic theotheragentm. I've been wonderign the same thing.

I don't know if it's just because they have less room, but my 6 brilliant rasboras hardly swim around the tank after my aquascaping. They just sort of congregate on the right side and pretty much stay there.

I imagine it's the equivalent of someone coming into your home and completely rearranging your furniture. Sure, the water and structure is the same, but whose room is where may change a bit.

 

[Ziggy953]

Let’s say you add a fish that is not aggressive but you have a somewhat aggressive fish in the tank already. If you change things around a little it will distract the aggressive fish from the new fish and help prevent problems. When you change things around your fish may hide for a day or two getting adjusted to the changes.

 

[Jchillin]

Simply imagine if someone walked into your house and remodeled everything but also removed your favorite chair. You may not like it in the beginning but you'll adjust. Same with fish.

 

[zenkatydid]

this is an interesting topic. while it may upset a fish's habits and comfort zones, i think rescaping or moving things around is a positive thing. it provides stimulation in an otherwise static environment. after a rescape or even just a water change - any slight difference in environment - i notice my fish are more energised, and as soon as i'm done, start exploring their new home. i would imagine a major rescape (like pulling everything out and starting over) may be more stressful than invigorating, but anything other than that i think is positive.