Why do my fish jump out of my tank?

[dick182]

In less than 2 years, I've had 4 Ocellris clowns, a flame angel, a whelleri goby, and a royal gramma all jump out of my tank and come to a dry roasted finish.
Why?...
I do have 3 tangs (Naso, yellow and sailfin) a green chromi and a juvi emperor angel in there, but I have never seen 1 second of agression from the tangs.
I don't get it. Could it be something else? Like electricity in the water or something?
BTW Everything else is great, coral growth, etc.
Thanks

 

[Anonymous]

That is a lot, gobies seem to be prone to jumping - lots of hiding places and no aggresion might help. My guess is unseen aggression and or crowding - you may not be seeing it but the fish may be stressed. For reference I've only lost two fish to jumping over past two years both notorious jumpers - bluespot jawfish and a 6 line wrasse.

You could check for stray voltage too but I have no idea if that makes them more prone to jump - I would think you would see odd behaviors manifest during the day as well.

 

[Len]

I would still guess it's aggression. Nearly everything that has jumped from my tank had something that spooked it (usually another fish). In the ocean, 100 feet of water is fine to dart up in. In our tanks, it means carpet surfing :?

Some fish do it as part of their natural behavior (e.g. Fairy Wrasses and some gobies). If you're using a canopy, you should seal the back of the canopy up with nylon mesh (screen door material). Simple, cheap, and effective while permitting gas exchange.

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah, do what Len said. I put screen across the back of my tank and haven't lost a fish to jumping since. I used a staple gun to attach it. Works great.

Louey