Are Loaches tight schooling fish

[Directorate]

hi people.

I've got 3 kubotais and a pakistani loach (yoyo), and I'm definately getting more of them. Recently more wood has been placed in the tank, along with Anubias and Sword plants and caves have been established: (since apparently these guys like caves and it makes them feel more secure).

Thing is: The loaches are'nt really schooling: It'd certainly be very interesting if they did, but at the momemt they mostly hang around by themselves scrounging the bottom for scraps.

Maybe its because I have too few? I'll add maybe.. 4 Kubotais, and 2 more pakistanis. All comments welcome.

srry about the terrible grammar before :/

[Mark in Vancouver]

One of the LOL members came up with "Yoyo Loach" to describe Botia almorhae, or the Pakistan loach. It seems a little more appropriate, given the Y-o-Y-o markings that develop on the fish's flanks.

A larger group of each will give you more action in the tank, but don't expect these fish to shoal in the upper part of the tank like tetras. Their action takes place mostly in the bottom third of the tank. They will shoal and swim together more, I think, if you have the right amount of water flow.

Bright light can keep them hidden during the day, too. A lot of loach keepers have developed clever ways of providing plant light during the day, but subdued "loach light" levels in the evening, before the lights go out. This may give you much better action from this group of loaches.

Perhaps Martin will link back to his homemade lighting post?

[Diana]

Loaches seem to chase each other and play. My Yoyos take turns being 'chasers' and 'victims' and turn and chase each other no matter who started it, they all get chased. Quite a course they swim, too; over and under and through all the wood and plants in the tank. They seem not to bother the other fish, though. The Clowns play their own games, and do not mix. The Discus are above all the 'nonsense'. Sometimes the Siamese Algae Eaters are encourages to join in all the fun and action, though.

They are not tight schooling fish like Tetras that swim in coordinated groups.

[Dirk_H.]

Maybe its because I have too few? I'll add maybe.. 4 Kubotais, and 2 more pakistanis.

Hello,
of course! Add 4 Kubotais, and 2 more pakistanis as a minimum! Some fishspecies feel bad or getting under stress, which make them ill, if the swarm are too few/small.

@Diana:

>The Discus are above all the 'nonsense'.<

lol. "His majesty of discus are not amused".

Best regards
Dirk

[Directorate]

Loaches seem to chase each other and play. My Yoyos take turns being 'chasers' and 'victims' and turn and chase each other no matter who started it, they all get chased. Quite a course they swim, too; over and under and through all the wood and plants in the tank. They seem not to bother the other fish, though. The Clowns play their own games, and do not mix. The Discus are above all the 'nonsense'. Sometimes the Siamese Algae Eaters are encourages to join in all the fun and action, though.

They are not tight schooling fish like Tetras that swim in coordinated groups.

Hmmm yeah I'm not totally obsessed with tight schoolers like tetras. I am, however, a fan of bottom feeders.

Wow cool. You keep discus AND loaches in your tank? Thats interesting because I'm planning that as well, also, just asking but aint it some kind of contradiction to put discus in a tank with fish that like fast-flowing water?

shrug.

[Emma Turner]

I personally would advise against trying to house loaches and discus together. The loaches indeed prefer faster flowing water, and their inquisitive nocturnal behaviour can unsettle discus overnight, causing much alarm/stress in some cases.
It may be possible in XXL show tanks where you can create a huge network of retreats and areas of high and low flow, but for the average tank, it is not the best combination. There are so many other companions to choose from for your loaches that will be much better suited and which will possibly even encourage them to venture out more (the 'dither fish' effect).

Emma

[Dirk_H.]

Hello,

if you keep in your mind discus lifes in southamerica and loaches lifes in asia, you know the geographical origin are to different. So it's better if you let it be to put these both fishes genera in one tank.

Best regards
Dirk

[Diana]

The tank has 3 filters. 2 outlets are near each other, and the flow in this area is pretty fast. The other filter is somewhat smaller and on the other end of the tank.
While all the fish are all over the tank at feeding time, they do tend to hang out at their preferred flow rate most of the time. Discus on the left, lower flow, and Loaches to the right. higher flow. Even then, the Loaches are spending more time under or behind the wood, not right in the path of the water.

[bslindgren]

I would say that loaches not so much shoal as constantly interact. At feeding time it's like a shark feeding frenzy and they chase each other around, and then it looks more like a shoal - my striatas do this a lot. Sometimes (kubotai seems to like this - we have had several recent threads) they do head-to-tail circle battles for 10-15 minutes. They also like resting together, sometimes packed into tight spaces like sardines. My kubotai like to line themselves up on a high perch as if they are keeping an eye on what's happening in the tank.

Mind you, a lot of tetras etc don't shoal either, except when they are scared. Neons and serpas, for example, seem to take up stations spread out across the bottom. So in that respect botiine loaches are good. I have no experience with sids, but from some threads, I get the impression that they shoal more, sometimes with other fish (rummynose tetras have been mentioned in several threads, for example)