new KOI in hidding

[tarmik]

Ok, now I figured out how to send a message on this site.

I purchased a KOI 4 days ago and put him into my pond which is 15x20'. In our pond we have goldfish and 2 sunfish and 1 perch. the goldfish do well with the sunfish & perch, but every since I released the KOI he went into hidding. I can not find him, well after 2 days of searching, I found him hidding under a rock and he has been missing since. Is this normal for a KOI to do when he gets taken from his environment and put into a new place? or do you think he is afraid of the sunfish & perch? Anyone ever experience this or can anyone tell me why he is hidding out and not socializing w/ the rest of the fish.... thanks

[dick benbow]

I think it's hard for most who post here to comment because in our ponds we have goldfish and koi ( or one or the other) but both are carp and quite compatible. They are social creatures and love to spend time together. I have had bass, sunfish ( never a perch tho! ) in aquariums as a kid and appreciate their beauty but I'm not convinced they are compatible. if I were you I'd get another koi as a companion and see if that doesn't change your original resident's attitude about hiding. Both perch and sunfish are fin nippers so I'm not sure they will end up being compatible. Just keep and eye out and monitor them out of sight.

[Richard Rombold]

Koi love to laze about near the surface hiding under an overhang or under plants. As your koi becomes more accoustomed to it's souroundings it will come out to feed if it's hungry.

[JasPR]

That is normal fish behavior. Although I agree with Dick in that this type of community pond will have to serve a lot of masters and likely it will be at the expense of one species or the other.

Coincidently, I just transferred 5 black sail fin molly off spring from a 50 gallon breeder tank to a 78 gallon bow front tank for further grow out.
The breeder tank was modestly filtered and was filled with live plants and brown gravel. There are also some pieces of drift wood on the bottom. The 78 bow is larger and longer and had once inch of crushed coral and sand in the bottom. The sand also holds a considerable amount of salt from the previous set up which was all marine. The surface is clear unlike the 50 breeder tank which was covered with duck weed, so the new environment is very bright compared to what the fry were used to.
Needless to say, the sailfins are freaked out! And also physiologically stressed from new water conditions. They attempted to hid in this new environment by holding up in the corners of the tank.
Today I added live food ( mosquito larva and daphnia ) and they are beginning to come alive and gain confidence to explore the new surroundings, snatching some live food here and there.

When fish come from Japan, they are asked to over come the15 plus hour trip and then to adapt to new conditions. It is wholly unrealistic to think they haven't been effected by all that. Let a new fish rest in a dimly light resting pond and feed tempting food ( it will all most likely be 'foreign' to them so pellets might be best?) after they have rested for a day or two. JR

[evabug1]

Definitely get him a buddy and then do some covert observation to see if they start hanging together. Also, you may want to chop up some food (if it’s floating) so that some sinks and the newbies will have a chance to eat too if they’re not coming up to the surface to eat.

I’m not sure of your set-up and how many koi it could comfortably handle taking into account their mature size with the other species in your pond, but if possible you may consider getting one or two more koi after that if everything goes well. The koi I’ve observed seem more nervous if they’re in a group under 4.

One more thing - it really is best to quarantine any new fish for a minimum of 6 weeks or more before you add them to your established population in the pond.

[tarmik]

today we went and purchased 2 more koi, in hopes to bring the other out of hidding, the other 2 went in and adjusted just well with the sunfish, perch & goldies, but the 1 from earlier in the week is still MIA. we did see him, hidding, but as soon as we move the rock he is in, he just goes and finds another. Our pond is 15'x20'x 3 1/2 feet deep, so they do have room to roam, just hope the one in hidding comes out soon. thanks for all your response to my post.

[JasPR]

You went out and bought two more? And added them directly to the pond with the other fish, one of which is not doing well already? For company I presume?

Fasten your seat belts your learning curve could be bumpy. JR

[Steve Nguyen]

considering a life span of 30+ yrs, I think it's ok for it to hide for a week or two.

here is a strange a story. my fish were frightened this morning after I turned off the air pump. they were all hurdled in a corner and wouldn't come up for food. they normally wound rush up with their big mouths open begging for foods. go figure!

Steve

[MikeM]

Nothing strange about that, Steve. Koi are very sensitive to changes. If you turn off aeration at intervals, they get adjusted to it occurring. If it only occurs on rare occasion, it is frightening. If you have multiple filter lines and turn one off, the koi go on 'alert' due to the change in currents, etc. On Wednesday evenings my koi are often a bit skittish during the evening meal. That's the day the yard guys cut grass. They've been told not to use their blowers around the pond, but they usually do. Sometimes on Fridays the garbage pick-up does not occur until 6pm or so. I've learned not to feed until the rumbling, noisy truck has been past several minutes. When we have guests, I do not feed. The koi are not adjusted to having people around and form a protective school. At friends' homes where there is lots of movement around the pond, or noisy kids playing, the koi react quite differently. Sensitivity to vibrations is acute. If the neighbor behind me slams a side garage door closed, my fish have a bit of a startle. ...Earthquakes in Japan must be extremely frightening to the fish.

[JasPR]

No question about it! Look at the thing that causes those flying Asian carp to 'fly'! It's the vibrations/sound of underwater motors.
That lateral line and sensor cells along the body including a primitive ear all alert the fish to one thing- danger. It is natural they would show caution at any changes in the ambient sound - up or down. JR