Longest surviving escapee record?

[NigelRichardson]

I'm sure I have the terminology wrong (Been in the hobby for 5 years and I'm still considering myself a newbie), but I have a custom tank with what I'm going to call an "internal overflow box"...

I also have a super cool Flame Hawkfish.... who managed to somehow get from my display tank into the overflow box - despite the fact that I have a jump net...

What amazes me is that about 18 months on, and he's still in there, seeming unaffected by his long-term adventure.

The back of my tank is effectively built under a cabinet, which means it's impossible to get a clear uninterrupted view inside the overflow box, but I know he's still in there and can spot him sometimes..... Based on the internal plumbing (i.e. Hiding places) I've never managed to catch him though and return to them to a much larger - and much happier - place in the display tank...

Do I win the record for longest surviving escapee?

 

[Reef Jedi]

Wow! I’ve had them go back in the overflow and disappear for a week before but you absolutely win with 18 months lol I’m sure it’s a lot happier now!

 

[BryanM]

There's a few good stories here I've read. Winner? Unknown.... But in the mix, for sure.

 

[NigelRichardson]

Wow! I’ve had them go back in the overflow and disappear for a week before but you absolutely win with 18 months lol I’m sure it’s a lot happier now!

My problem is that he's still in there.... I can get a net in there and swirl it around, but I'm pretty much blind..... After 10 mins of trying to get him I generally bail on the basis that I'm stressing him out.... One day I've gotta get him eventually surely.... He's gonna have one heck of a story to tell his tank mates when (if) I eventually get him out of there...

 

[Reef Jedi]

My problem is that he's still in there.... I can get a net in there and swirl it around, but I'm pretty much blind..... After 10 mins of trying to get him I generally bail on the basis that I'm stressing him out.... One day I've gotta get him eventually surely.... He's gonna have one heck of a story to tell his tank mates when (if) I eventually get him out of there...

One would think he would swim into the net for rescuing lol I know that’s not how it works but maybe it’ll catch on one day!

 

[BryanM]

Seriously tried to find the story, but someone relayed similar, was just taking pics, and poof, in the background, on accident, there one was again, well over a year.

Others overflow "monsters" that had no idea they were even in there.

 

[OrionN]

I had baby Banggai Cardinal grew from birth to full maturity in my overflow box before. It took several years. There are a lot of fauna in the overflow box. Those old style Durso overflow has rather quite, low flow at the bottom. The only way I can get him out is to remover the standpipe and drain the overflow box.

 

[Staghorn]

I didn’t have the wier on my overflow for the last six months or so, it’s amazing how many fish have gone over the edge and into that overflow box, about two months ago I connected drain hoses to both bulkheads and into some 5 gallon buckets and pulled the standpipes and essentially toilet bowled the overflow, after draining it completely and still putting another 5 gallons through I was able to recover, a clown fish, a Cleaner wrasse and a neon Gobie, but I still wasn’t able to get another neon gobie that was in there even though I put another 10 gallons of water through it. Because I’m not a smart man (but I know what love is) I didn’t put the weir back on. A bunch of fish got in there again including the neon gobie I already “saved”. So yesterday again I did the process of flushing the overflow and I was able to get a ruby dragonette, and a Sailfin blenny (that I thought died 4 or five months ago! ) out of there. I put 20 gallons of water through that thing and the 2 neon gobies held on
through the storm, the two prisoners who refuse to reincorporate with society will stay in the overflow until the next storm. So while I’m laying down on the floor in agony after this process, actually down there trying to reach something at the back of the sump I noticed that in the cryptic area of my sump another fish, an aptasia eating filefish , that I though was long gone many months ago managed to make it down the stand pipe and past the filter sock(I can’t even get them out of a net!), And was happily living its escapee life in the all alone in the darkness. These are truly amazing adventures these fish go on.

Ps: I put the weir back on.

 

[OrionN]

I put an acrylic cover on top of my overflow box, and put additional layer as needed to fill the gap between this level all the way up to the net cover, so fish does not get kill lodge between the acrylic and the net top. It it difficult to get fish out of the overflow box as you all notice. However, small fry that just fit through the teeth of the overflow cannot be help. It is a very friendly space for fries, so I do try to look at it once in a while. I have not seen any clowns in it yet, just occasionally Banggai Cardinal. These fries are really large size at hatch and can survive on tank fauna right away.
I have not had any Banggai in my tank for years lately. Boring fish IMO.

 

[Paul B]

I had a couple of Gecko gobies that I never saw for about 5 years. I would catch a glimpse of one of their tails very rarely if I shot some worms in the back of the tank. I am not sure if they are still in there and that was yeas ago.

I also had a cusk eel or brutilid for 18 years and just about never saw it. I found it by accident when I removed rocks to move to my new house. Unfortunately I put that rock n a bucket and didn't know the fish was in there and he was about 6" long and bright yellow