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hello all
was just looking for some tips on how to catch some fish from my saltwater tank...
i got some troublesome blue damsels, and the tank is 90 gallons and full of live rock. they hide in the rock, and i dont want to rip the tank apart.
any thoughts would be great.

Make them come to you catch them while your feeding them

Yea thanks for suggestion.
But already tried, there to quik and smart
for that.
Just thinking is there any kinds of traps
I can make or buy. Any home made ideas
out there

Not sure if the same applies to SW as fw, but for the real fast ones it's always a little easier if you go after them after lights out.

I've also found if you leave the net in for a bit then come back, the fish have had a chance to get used to it and don't rush away quite as much.


Good luck.


^_^

Any fish in a SW tank is going to a nasty bugger to catch. Period. If your rock is easily moved, put it into a retaining tank. This will give the little monsters nothing to hide in or under. Drain at least half your tank. This makes less water for them to escape in. Now you are thinking, I am sure, "WOW! That is a LOT of work!" You would be right. In my local fish store there is a 90 with blue damsels listed as not for sale. I asked them once why not, because they were very pretty and I wanted them in the worst way. They are not for sale because they cannot catch them. It is easier to just have them in a display tank and lose money than to tear their tank apart.

I guess the question really becomes how badly do you want the bad-tempered buggers out? If it isn't as badly as you think, you will have to arrange that tank around them, and they are kind of like Hitler. No matter the size of their territory, more is always a good thing. In SW tanks you quickly learn how important research is. Fish are pretty, but can be genuine pains in the hind parts without proper knowledge.

Babel has a good idea, when you don't have rockwork. The problem with having large piles of rock is that they kind of 'nest' in it . If they do make traps (don't think they do, but it's been awhile) you can find them on liveaquaria.com

Yes, I know better now. They were very helpful with everything else so I didn't think they were just trying to make a buck.

ali

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Frabill-Minnow-Trap-Vinyl-Black/16494423

You can do that while feeding them.