# catching/bagging Neolamprologus multifasciatus



## cdavitt (Apr 4, 2011)

Any advice or techniques on how to catch Neolamprologus multifasciatus?

My colony has grown to over 40 or so and I need to remove some. I've havenÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t even tried to catch any yet so I was looking for advice/tips/tricks.

My concerns obviously are that when I put a net in the tank they all scatter and hide in their shells. Can I simply lift up the shell and 'turn' it in my hand so all the water and fish come out? I would be concerned with the fish swimming too far into the shell and not coming out and maybe dying if the water is emptied. Is there a better way other than including the shell?

Thanks


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

If you pop the shells high up in the tank on top of rocks or use a string bag hung up high with the shells in it. They will leave the shells and gather at the tank bottom over a couple of days.You can have bits of pipe on the tank bottom to give them temp cover.
Do not sell them in the shells or remove the shells from the water or try and get them out by force. These things can kill them.

All the best James


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## GTZ (Apr 21, 2010)

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/u ... ellies.php


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## Rick_Lindsey (Aug 26, 2002)

Eventually I'm going to be in the same boat. Have you tried a 20-oz bottle trap yet?

-Rick (the armchair aquarist)


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## Steffano2 (Jan 11, 2007)

cdavitt said:


> Any advice or techniques on how to catch Neolamprologus multifasciatus?
> 
> My colony has grown to over 40 or so and I need to remove some. I've havenÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t even tried to catch any yet so I was looking for advice/tips/tricks.
> 
> ...


The easiest way is to raise the shell they are living in off the bottom of their tank. You are placing the shell on a riser or pillar. I like to use a small clay flower pot or small pieces of PVC pipe. Wait for the fish to leave the shell, they will go to the bottom of the tank, then catch them.

I always find it's easier to start the process in the AM so you have plenty of time to move from shell to shell and catch the fish you want to catch. Sometimes you may have to lift all the shells up at one time. It all depends on how close the next shell is for cover. If it's owned by another female they won't be staying long.

Never move them in their shells, they sometimes will swim deep into their shells and get trapped die.


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## cdavitt (Apr 4, 2011)

Thanks for the input. This should be a good adventure. Sorry, I should have checked for an article in the library ahead of time. I will try propping up the shells on a pvc pipe or pot first. If I do this and they leave the shell I figure they will just run for another, so should be fun.


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## Steffano2 (Jan 11, 2007)

cdavitt said:


> Thanks for the input. This should be a good adventure. Sorry, I should have checked for an article in the library ahead of time. I will try propping up the shells on a pvc pipe or pot first. If I do this and they leave the shell I figure they will just run for another, so should be fun.


Lift all shells and you should be okay.


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## prov356 (Sep 20, 2006)

> I will try propping up the shells on a pvc pipe or pot first. If I do this and they leave the shell I figure they will just run for another, so should be fun.


I've used eggcrate propped up in the tank. If you can, use a piece large enough to hold all the shells. Give it a day. Your challenge is that you don't know how many you have. You won't know for sure that all are out. I'm not sure how stubborn multi's are, but I've tried this with brevis and had them stay the whole day without coming out. For most, it does work though and you should have most of them out in a few hours.

I've also used a bucket. That way you can de-shell some at a time without letting them escape into other shells. You can move shells to a different bucket once you believe them to be empty. Let it sit for a few hours and watch for any activity. This could take a while, obviously.


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## Deeda (Oct 12, 2012)

I've had the best luck using the method Tim shows above (Thanks for the idea!!), especially since my tanks have a lot of rock in them. I also prefer to do this at least 24 hours before planning to take the fish to meetings or auctions.

It's also helpful to place some PVC fittings/pipe in the bottom of the pail or tank you use to de-shell them and still allow the fish to hide but allow you to easily remove them from the PVC when it's time to bag them up.


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## cdavitt (Apr 4, 2011)

Oh thatÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s perfect! Thanks for the picture. That idea seems much better as there are so many shells in the tank, once they left one they would just hide in another.

Thanks again for saving me potential hours of frustration!


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## DrgRcr (Jun 23, 2009)

I've used the same method as Prov and it worked like a charm.


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## Jack Stone (Nov 29, 2010)

Why separate them from their shells? I prefer to just let the shells go with them, they'll probably feel safer during the journey and they immediately have a home in their new tank (very helpful if there are established fish around).

Pretty hardy little buggers these, haven't lost any during the few moves I've done. Just pick the shell up covering the entrance with your hand so they don't make a mid-water escape and move them to wherever they must be.

I sometimes submerge the bag completely and just do all the work underwater.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

If the fish should come out of their shells in the bag during transit, and the shells shift you have squished fish.


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## Jack Stone (Nov 29, 2010)

To prevent that I simply don't pack too many many shells / fish per bag...

It may also help that I use light weight shells. My adult male Multi (not too easily but he does) picks them up and deposits them on the other side of the tank when he likes. I'm fairly certain he would be able to escape a few shells swishing around in the water. You might expect to loose a few younger fry if you're not cautious during the move.

All that said, I've sent 9 Brevis (in two bags) across the country in their shells (large and heavy alikrekel shells) without a single death. Before that I did get one squished fish when I underestimated the amount of space I'd need in the Styrofoam box and ended up cramming 10 Brevis (in their shells) per bag and taking them on a 8 hour drive in under an unrelenting African sun. With a larger box I'd do it again any time and expect no deaths.

Fish are quick, I've seen rocks dropped onto the entrance of a shell where a fish was chilling out, checking out what we were doing to the tank, the fish came out later, only harm was being a little pissed off. Point is, as long as you're not taking them on a roller-coaster and do give them enough space between the shells they should survive.


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## cdavitt (Apr 4, 2011)

Giving the eggcrate in a bucket technique a shot tonight. Only question is how did you secure the eggcrate 2/3 of the way down in the bucket? The piece I have 'spins' or 'rolls' and flips over and falls to the bottom. I'm sure some duct tape or force would solve this, I just wanted to see if there was a better trick.


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## whiskeyriver (Nov 29, 2011)

I'll take some off your hands! :thumb:


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## prov356 (Sep 20, 2006)

cdavitt said:


> Giving the eggcrate in a bucket technique a shot tonight. Only question is how did you secure the eggcrate 2/3 of the way down in the bucket? The piece I have 'spins' or 'rolls' and flips over and falls to the bottom. I'm sure some duct tape or force would solve this, I just wanted to see if there was a better trick.


You have to trim it just right so all four sides make contact, then just push it down snugly. The lower into the bucket it goes, the better, as some fish will try to escape the bucket. I kept mine covered and walked away from it for a while. You can also just use short pieces of pvc standing on end to support it.


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## Deeda (Oct 12, 2012)

If you are using a straight sided pail or bucket, you can use short lengths of 1/2" CPVC to make the legs as it fits snugly in the square holes of the egg crate light diffuser panel.


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