Angelfish Jumped Ship

[Qasimja]

Swallowtail angelfish has been in the DT for a little over 2 weeks eating fine and healthy im sitting at my desk and i hear a thud like something hit the floor off my tank so i look around thinking maybe a pump fell off the tank somehow and she was on the floor she flew out of the tank and was laying on the hard wood floor! lol i was able to scoop her up and put her back into the DT right now shes swimming behind the rocks looks to be swimming fine was breathing a tiny bit heavy but i would expect that im gonna get some egg crate tomorrow and cover the tank

 

[nereefpat]

Generally, angels aren't famous for jumping...but yes...get a cover. Egg crate works okay, as long as your fishes' heads are all bigger than 1/2". It does block light as well. Mesh is more ideal.

 

[Qasimja]

Generally, angels aren't famous for jumping...but yes...get a cover. Egg crate works okay, as long as your fishes' heads are all bigger than 1/2". It does block light as well. Mesh is more ideal.

yea shes fine this morning eating normally she took a mighty big jump i was afraid she might have some sort of damage

 

[PotomacReef]

yea shes fine this morning eating normally she took a mighty big jump i was afraid she might have some sort of damage

I'm not sure how fish have evolved to handle 5 foot drops onto hardwood flooring and be fine! I've seen several fish jump and land on the ground (friends and my own) and they all seem to do fine if you get to them right away. I think it becomes a problem with larger fish, more ornamental reef fish are relatively small.

If she's eating and swimming normally the main threat is over. Sometimes their slime coat gets messed up when they're handled at all...even netting them and normal movement can cause this. Keep an eye on them and look for any scale damage, arrival of parasites or fin rot. I'd also turn the lights down or off for a day or two to reduce stress on the fish if she starts to show signs of something not normal.