Why do guppy fish swim at the top of the tank

You cannot always predict the behavior your fish will manifest in response to stressful stimuli. If guppies which thrive in the company of peaceful fish feel safer at the top of an aquarium filled with bullies, that is where they will run.

Your guppies know that their food comes from the top of the tank. If they are starving, they will hang out at the top either in anticipation of more food or as a way of coercing you into feeding them. Like other pets, fish show their desires by acting in specific ways. You may suspect that this is your case when your guppies swim at the top intentionally once you approach their tank. However, once being fed, they are less likely to stay near the water surface.

They will naturally swim back down, turning back to their business. Regarding misbehavior in guppies, here are a few related articles that you may also find useful. Each one features practical solutions you can take to improve the conditions of your guppies and their tankmates:. If your guppies are swimming at the top, observe them carefully. On the other hand, if you have noticed signs of distress such as labored breathing, weight loss, lethargy, loss of appetite, and the like, you should take steps to identify why your guppies are swimming at the top.

That will allow you to craft and deploy the right solution:. To maintain optimal conditions in the tank, you must test the water regularly to ensure that the pH, temperature, and hardness are accurate.

If the toxins levels are too high, you must carry out regular water changes. You should also remove all decomposing organic matter before it corrupts your water. Make an effort to test the water weekly and keep a close eye on the ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite levels. Otherwise, you will have a hard time maintaining a consistent temperature.

Make sure that you check my recommendation for an aquarium heater. The water will collect oxygen as it splashes back into the tank, especially if you pour it back from a great height.

This act will also create a disturbance, increasing the rate at which oxygen dissolves into the water. It is merely an emergency solution. If you already have a filter, find out whether or not it is working. For some people, it might be cheaper to add air stones to the tank. That kit consists of ten pieces of air stones which you can quickly scatter across your aquarium. Within minutes, they will turbulent stagnant water, improving oxygenation dramatically. Of course, none of these solutions matter if your tank is overstocked or if the temperature is too high.

If necessary, reduce the number of guppies in the tank. Keep only those fish that the tank can accommodate. And if the temperature is the source of the reduced oxygen levels, you should take the necessary steps to remedy the issue. That may include taking the lid off the tank, keeping the aquarium away from direct sunlight, using a fan to blow across the surface, and adding ice cubes in a zip-close bag.

That goes without saying. If your guppy keeps swimming at the top because it wants food, feed it more. Keep in mind that guppies should be fed no more than two meals a day.

Ideally, you should feed your guppies the amount of food they can consume within two minutes. Overfeeding your fish will lead to complications like constipation and swim bladder disease. If you believe that the competition in the water is so stiff that one or more guppies rarely eat to their satisfaction, you can isolate them, remove the aggressive feeders in the tank, or squirt the food in the areas your guppies frequent.

If you keep forgetting feeding your guppies, I highly suggest considering getting an automatic feeder. This device allows me to go on vacation without worrying about my fish. During this period, you should raise the temperature to 80 degrees F. The peas should be cooked and skinned. Do this on the fourth day of fasting. That is why I suggest consulting a vet to prescribe an antibiotic if necessary.

You should also consider adding some aquarium salt. If you put your guppies together with aggressive fish, such as cichlids, angelfish, tiger bars or other bigger fish that can eat them, most likely your guppies will feel insecure. The lack of hiding space or live plants is the worst.

Your guppies will not be able to hide, and the aggressive tank mates will chase them until they die. I see this question popping up a lot on Facebook groups and forums. Beginners complain about their beautiful guppies staying in a corner of the tank. When I ask when was the last time when they did a water change, they say, that never changed the water in their tank. Well, you should keep in mind, that even though your filter and plants can remove a lot of waste from the water column, changing water is essential in every fish tank.

Sometimes you might find that some of your female guppies will retreat in one corner of the tank, or will hide between plants. The female guppy is in labor and is ready to give birth to lots of guppy fry. If you want to save the fry, this is the perfect opportunity to remove the female from the main tank.

You can either use a breeding box to save the small fry, or you can use a separate tank for raising the baby guppies. I really hope my article has helped you figure out why your guppies stay in the corner of your tank.

If you still have any questions, please submit a comment. Also, would like to hear from you, if you have experience with keeping guppies.

Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Stressed Guppy The most common reason why a guppy fish would stay in the corner of the tank is stress. Here are the top factors which will stress guppies and will make them hide in one corner: transportation and new habitat inadequate water temperature small or overcrowded fish tank lack of plants and hiding place aggressive tank mates poor water condition sickness or diseases New Guppy Hiding in the Corner When you purchase a new guppy from your pet store or online, they can go through a lot of stress during transportation.

The acclimation of a new guppy fish is very easy. In both situations, guppies can slow down and stay in one corner of your aquarium or hide. Ammonia, even in small quantities can harm and eventually kill your fish. Instant death is also very common in new tanks due to the high ammonia levels.

They might get stressed and most of the time will hide or just stay in a corner of your tank. The only way to remove nitrates and other compounds from the water is through water change. If you want it to be a surprise on how the fry baby guppies look when they get older get the coolest ones. You will want to be ready to get more fish tanks cause you will quickly become over stocked. Guppies will have babies none-stop. And what I have noticed is if you want them to have fry they will only give birth to like if you don't want them to give birth they will give birth to A LOT!

If you have any other questions please ask. Hey I recently got some guppys and they did the same thing, but they swam in different depths after a few days. I also got some rose barbs and they stayed at the bottom in the back for a while, but now they swim all over. Guppies like the light esspecially adults, my babies spend most of their time at the top and my adults aswell. I guess it's just a guppy thing. Hi guys, got the wee man a 64 litre tropical aquarium, now i have a filter in it which is fine but we also got the long oxygen ston with pipe, do I need a separate pump for this?

Also do I actually need this with the filter being there anyway? No fish in it as yet as just set it up tonight. I started with 3 females and 1 male 2 years ago. Now have around 30 babies of all different ages happily living together which I am going to seperate shortly. I just have too many. I'm taking some back to pet shop as they are really healthy.

Definitely a pecking order, in my tank anyway!! Girl Who Loves Fish, let me just say that breeding is very simple for guppies. Some females may even be pregnant when you bring them home because they DO NOT separate the males from the females. They also could die of birth defects too, so be in mind of that. Make sure that if you want females, make sure they outnumber the male. Like 2 females and 1 male. Every male you buy add two females if you're looking to buy them. Otherwise, if you don't, males will harass females by chasing them around the tank and nipping at their fins.

Personally, I wouldn't recommend this, but if you are willing to, then good luck! I have a girl and a boy guppie they made 3 babies and so l seperated the babies in a fish bowl and the boy and girl in a fish tank. Like my guppies and other breeds of fish knows that every time I go to turn out my light it is feeding time and the lights go off. So try to feed them like every morning or every night or when ever you have time.

I just got 2 guppies yesterday and one was weak so it died. But now the 2 fish are best buddies and they are only at the top and won't go down to the bottom of the tank. Whay do I do? M y A quarium C lub.