Jumping or starving fish?

[molly]

I think I am ready to get a third fish.
I have read and read and read about both the firefish and the lawnmower blenny and now I am scared to get either.
I have heard that the firefish will leap from the tank and plummet to its death while the lawnmower blenny will only eat choice algae until he slowly starves.
My tank has a decent cover and the only other fish in the tank right now are two clowns. I have thirty pounds of LV with lots of hiding places. I might get a cardinal fish and/or a Gramma...I will need to see how things go.
As for the blenny, I have been feeding the fish nori, frozen brine shrimp and spirulina flakes. I also have a decent amount of algae on the CC, glass and LR. Also I have a sneaky emerald crab (but I think this is my own paranoia), will he bother the blenny?
And if you have made it through this lengthy message, do you have opinions, suggestions?
Thanks!
Molly

 

[amphiprion]

I've had the exact opposite of Sammy's experience. I have purchased 5 firefish over the years and they have all jumped out of the tank. You can't leave the top open for any reason. They spook very easily and will jump out.
As to the lawnmower blennies, they are an iffy proposition IMO at best. Some people have success with getting them to eat normal aquarium foods; others have seen them die of starvation once they have gone through the algae in a tank.

 

[fshhub]

well i kinda fall in the middle with the fire fish, we only ever had one pair(a little over a year now) and they never left the tank,...................... for long, LOL, they have jumped, those lil buggers can jump too, like 8 or 10 inches out of the tank, but luckily for me, they landed back in the water, IMO they only seem to jump when spoooked(ours jumped when we were doing maintenance and our hands were in the tank)
as for the lawnmower, i have not had bad luck with them, but we suppliment his diet with algae wafers and seaweed, every other day, to give him a variety of foods
HTH

 

[dmaister]

I've got a firefish that hasn't jump, but it definitely darts under LR whenever I walk by. I do have a plexiglass cover, though.
I also have a scooter blenny that I haven't ever noticed eating anything (at least in the past week since I just got it).
I feed live brine, frozen mysis, tenera algea, formula one flakes, phyto plankton and I just got some calerpa. I still don't see it feeding on anything. Any clues? I just don't want it to starve. I'll have to ask my LFS what they fed it if I continue not to see it eat.

 

[ofalegend]

dmaister, I noticed you were from Nashville. Ever go to Aquatic Critters? I live about three hours from Nashville, but a friend in Murfreesboro said it would be worth the trip to go there for my fish. Just thought I would see if you had been there

 

[fshhub]

for the scooter, what we do, is
we use a turkey baster, it is very hard to feed scooters, but if they do eat, one thing you need to do is get the food down to them,
we feed frozen brine and use a turkey baster to shoot the food down to her, so she can get some of the food, before it disappears, jsut a suggestion that seems to help us
now, it is funny, when we get out the baster, she hops her way to the top right of our lr pile, LOL

 

[dmaister]

OfALegend,
Yes, I do go to Aquatic Critter. It is only 5-10 minutes from my home. They are usually very well stocked, and have a very knowledgeable staff. It is a two-family business, and they have plenty of fish, inverts, and supplies (as well as FW and Reptiles.) It is the nicest of the 3 or 4 SW LFS that I know of. I've gotten all my LR, LS fish and inverts from them. Their supplies are more expensive then purchasing online - but the advice is sometimes worth it. Their website is<a href="http://www.aquaticcritter.com" target="_blank">http://www.aquaticcritter.com</a>, and they post when they get new stock in. However, the fish are usually gone within 4 days. They currently have a new shipment once a week and I believe they are planning on adding another shipment. I would recommend them, but I don't know what to compare them to.
Fshhub. Thanks. I'll try that, but I've seen live brine floar right in front of it, and it won't snatch. It's still moving around, though - so hopefully it is scavenging something. (maybe the frozen mysis that usually drops to the bottom.)

 

[wildblue4]

hey guys that sounds real good for me, because i live in paducah. it would be worth my time to drive to nashville to get fish. thanks for the link and info.

 

[molly]

I freaked and ended up with a Cardinal fish.
I am pretty sure I want to get a Royal Gramma so maybe I should just stick to 4 fish.....
Thanks for the advice, as always.
Molly