catching fish

[Corey]

Are there any tricks to catching fish in a tank full of live rock and hiding spots, without removing rock?

[Buccaneer]

Originally Posted by Corey

Are there any tricks to catching fish in a tank full of live rock and hiding spots, without removing rock?

Build a trap out of eggcrate

[Dale D]

How big is the fish?

I had to get two 3" damsels out of a 175 g reef once, so, I got the smallest barbless fishing hook I could find and some line and went fishing.

It took about 5 minutes to get him and did no harm to him at all.

His buddy was a different story. He saw what had happened to his friend and would never go near the baited hook again. Even when I tried it several months later.

I finally got him out about 6 months later when I decided it was time to redo the aquascaping in the tank.

[EmilyB]

Depending on the type of fish, some are easily caught with a critter keeper and some type of way to close the door on them while eating.

[aznufo]

u could try turning on the lights in the middle of the night.. the fish are usually woozy and have a less than normal reaction time.. i was lucky to catch my 6-line like that..

[Corey]

could you elaborate on the egg crate thing? they are damsels ( three of them) and they sleep under the rocks. I tried a piece of krill tied to a string and had it flowing in the current right in front of a net. they would have nothing to do with it. That is untill I got tired of watching and waiting and left. When I came back the krill was gone. ( little bastards)

[Buccaneer]

Just glue a rectangular box together using eggcrate and put a acrylic door on it that you can close with some fishing line

Another way to go is to get a plastic pop botle ( clear ) and cut the top off and turn it inside the bottle like a funnel ( mouth should be OK for damsel in terms of size ) ... bait it and collect your damsels a few hours later

[pocilipora]

Ive also done the barbless hook, works the best and quickest.

[JohnM99]

Buy an orange juice container - one that is an elongated oval, a bit narrow - then buy a cheap mirror and mount it on the bottom, opposite the opening - suspend it in the tank sideways with a bit of food in it, thread a string through the lid to close it - when the fish (particularly an aggressive small fish like a damsel - swim up to the opening and looks in, he sees his own reflection in the mirror, and charges in to scare the "new" fish away.
Voila.
Cost - less than $5.

[IslandReefer]

I have used a clear plastic bag....some bait and a purse string to close.
I spread the baited bag out under just the actinics then add food when the MH's come on..........the fish dash into the bag in a breakfast frezy....one or two goes is all you get ,then they know it is a trick....so be quick
John the mirror idea has good potential I,ll try that next time. TX
Regards