novafishy Posted March 22, 2004 Share Posted March 22, 2004 i've got a female royal whiptail catfish at around 15-16cm long. (not including tail) she has managed to squeeze into a shell. is she stuck?? i've tried to pull her out of the shell, but she doesnt want to move. is she about to lay eggs?? i thought the male takes care of the eggs, as there is a larger male in the same tank too. the female which is stuck eats well and is always constantly on the move...she is actually quite active considering whiptails are known to be very peaceful and stationary. here are the links to the pictures...(i dont know how to upload them so u just see the picture w/o the link) thanks so much for ur help!!! whiptail stuck 1 whiptail stuck 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Posted March 22, 2004 Share Posted March 22, 2004 No ! she is not about to lay eggs. Sturisoma usualy perform a "danse routine" for a day or so between the the male and female before spawning, and then lay eggs on a flat surface. If the fish does not get herself out of the shell, I would be giving the shell a gentle tap with a hammer to release her. What is the most valuable ? the shell or the fish ? A lesson learned,,,,, don't put nice looking fish traps in the aquarium! Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boots n all Posted March 22, 2004 Share Posted March 22, 2004 Silly question,...are you sure it's a female and not a male protecting eggs? if so it will take two weeks for the fry and parent to come out, either way dont panic for a week at least, she may free herself Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novafishy Posted March 23, 2004 Author Share Posted March 23, 2004 bOOTS: it is DEFINITELY a female. cos i know which is female and which is the male. well she is still stuck in there now...i will try to pull her out. i'm starting to get real worried now... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Posted March 23, 2004 Share Posted March 23, 2004 Sturisoma do not use caves to spawn. More like she found some nice juicey algae to chew on and got herself into a spot of bother. Pulling any fish backwards is fraught with danger. They are only designed to go one way. Fins, gills, scales etc., all point backward!!!!! Is the shell more valuable than the fish ???? Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novafishy Posted March 23, 2004 Author Share Posted March 23, 2004 hehe thanks alan! i slowly pulled her out, and then halfway thru, she decided to come out by herself! i'm soo relieved now. but i dont know why she would go in there!! there is no algae spot in there...hehe she has a slight bent curvature in her back tho....is this seirous?? or will be naturally go back to normal? tnx! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boots n all Posted March 23, 2004 Share Posted March 23, 2004 Good news that she is out, who knows what will happen there but the first thing is did you get rid of the shell? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novafishy Posted March 24, 2004 Author Share Posted March 24, 2004 sure thing! that shell is no more! thanks again guys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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