# Are Killifish Jumpers?(i don't mean a type of clothing)



## jacko (Mar 2, 2006)

could anybody tell me if Killifish are jumpers,because I have an open top tank and i would like to keep some in my tank,as i have already lost a couple of fish in the past to their kamikazee nature i just wondered if anyone has kept these fish successfully in a planted tank,and while i'm on the subject,do they leave plants alone as well.

Thanks, Mark.


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## gacp (Sep 11, 2006)

Yes, most are. Some are not (e.g. _Austrolebias_ spp.), but most are, and many are *extremely* agile.


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## Tonka (Mar 20, 2004)

Rainbow panchax and aphyosemion gardneri think they can fly.


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## frugalfish (Apr 20, 2005)

Definitely research the type you are interested in before buying. Most will be more than be willing to show off how far they can leap. Tight tank lids are usually called for when housing killies.


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## ed seeley (Dec 1, 2006)

IME they will get out of any tiny cap in cover glasses or hoods, so definitely!


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## jrIL (Apr 23, 2005)

On the otherhand, if kept in a heavly planted tank, you can get by with few losses. I have kept various killies in an open tank and have only lost a few to jumping.


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## jacko (Mar 2, 2006)

thanks to you all who have replied to the thread and I've decided not to get any killifish so i'll have to rethink on what show fish to add as impact to the aquarium and if anyone has any ideas just let me know.

Thanks,Mark


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## JanS (Apr 14, 2004)

I don't have any experience with Killie's, but your topic title made me chuckle... LOL!

What type of tank do you have, and is there any theme you're aiming for?
If you fill us in on those things, you might get some good suggestions.


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## Jubs (Mar 24, 2006)

Tonka said:


> Rainbow panchax and aphyosemion gardneri think they can fly.


I couldn't agree more! I had some gardneri I was moving them to a new tank and I had them in a speciment container and I when I went to put them in the tank one of the males was missing I searched everywhere I found him about a year later dried up about 5 feet away from where I lost him and I searched for close to half an hour with no luck.


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## gacp (Sep 11, 2006)

Jubs said:


> I couldn't agree more! I had some gardneri I was moving them to a new tank and I had them in a speciment container and I when I went to put them in the tank one of the males was missing I searched everywhere I found him about a year later dried up about 5 feet away from where I lost him and I searched for close to half an hour with no luck.


On the other hand, I've had _Austrolebias_ spp. for ages on open tanks...

I guess, if there is one general rule about killies, is that there are no general rules. Same applies to cichlids.


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## jacko (Mar 2, 2006)

my tank is a 325 litre open top with a Luminaire with 4x54 watts T5 lighting, 
the substrate is gravel mixed with laterite,I also have pressurised CO2 system delivering approx 38ppm.the tank has been set up for about 10 months,the filter system is a Ehiem external and at the moment it has a mixture of a lot of stem plants(fast growers)and a few amazon swords,vallis,crypts etc.I did have an algae problem when i installed the lighting but i am now EI dosing which has virtually eliminated all algae(there is a trace of dust algae but i can live with that)the fish i have at the moment are 7 black neon tetra's 4 florida flag fish 4 SAE 1 Bolivian Ram and an albino plec.I did have a couple of Bosemanii rainbows but these are the ones who tried to make a bid for freedom.the water perameters are as follows.

ph 6.6
nitrate 20ppm
phos 3ppm
no nitrite 
no ammonia
kh 5 degrees and gh 10 degrees 
The lights are left on for 11 hours per day and the plants are growing that fast i have to trim back every week and throw out about a bucket of plants at a time.
I must admit i haven't tried to aquascape it has such but it's more like a jungle look.


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## T-Bone (Nov 23, 2005)

I cant remember the name of the one I got but it turned out to be a very bad fin nipper. Nipped at everyone as soon as he was introduced. Almost took another fishes tail off. had to take them back, (sold as a pair) darn shame it is a beautiful fish. Would have loved to set up a breeding tank for them but I'm just not that commited.


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