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Does any one know the average lifespan of yo-yos? My water is fine; zero ammonia, zero nitrites, ph is 7.6, and 5 nitrates. The other fish in the tank are not showing any problems. Over the course of a week to a week and a half, I've lost all of my yo-yos. I can't find anything wrong. 2 of them have hidden in the java moss or in a crevice behind a ornament and were covered in fungus by the time I found them. I hope it was just their time and not something else, but I just don't know... I've had them since Dec 2008 or Jan 2009... I think... Or was it Dec 2007 or Jan 2008?

After seeing my registration date for the site, I now it was the late part of 2008 or early 2009.

TTFN --->Ta-Ta-For-Now
Kelly ;o}

There are very few aquarium fish that live less than 5-10 years. Even tetras and corys can go 10 years. Just about the only fish that don't live to the 5-10 year mark are annuals such as killis. Without any interesting biology that would make their lives shorter, 5-10 years should be achievable with these loaches.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

The thing is... I have no way of knowing how old they were when I got them from the fish store. They didn't really grow that much in the span of time that we had them. So it's possible they were adults or young adults when I bought them from the LFS. The store had ordered them from a company/fishery overseas and we had to wait a while to get them.

TTFN --->Ta-Ta-For-Now
Kelly ;o}

I did a little Google on the lifespan of the Yo Yo and it was very interesting. Most were saying 4-6 years then one was saying 6-16 years.
I think you would be better thinking about the 5 years mark.
Their life span also depends on their breeding and their life style in any tank.

This link will give more info about Yo Yo's
YoYo info

Keith

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Fish are very usually quite young, whether they are wild caught, and especially if they are farmed. Farming operations treasure fish that grow quickly in a short amount of time; if Yoyo's are farmed they are likely sold in the 6-12 months age bracket. I highly doubt most wild caught fish are past 2-3 years of age, except for real big fish.

I take estimations of life span on the internet with a huge helping of salt. Longevity is hard to estimate because it takes time to find out. I stand by the idea that longevity should be more about "potential" life span, not "average" life span. Most aquarists might lose fish after 5 years due to freak accidents and sickness, however if we consider and report the average, I believe that we underestimate the potential age that the vast majority of fish can live happily at. I remember once that a marine fish site posted that almost all reef fishes had a life span of 2-3 years, and it received a hailstorm of criticism for estimates that were simply untrue. Unfortunately, this is probably the average life span because of improper care and accidents, but I believe it is false to report that you should expect your fish to live only so long when it can live longer with proper care.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

Sorry for replying on an old thread. I have some yoyo loaches, the oldest one, Mister Brave (pictured here), I bought in 2014, so he must be around 3 years for now. I call him brave, because he likes to dart in and out of the pipe where my freshwater morays likes to hang out.

The oldest of my fishes are three Polypterus Palmases that I kept since 2009 or 2010. Two of them died last month, only one (the smallest) remain. So he must be around 7 or 8 years old by now.

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