How does this happen

Ok so I watched all my fish to eat and they were all there. I left for a baseball game never removing the top. When I came back my filimented flasher wrasse was dead on the floor. What had to have happened for the fish to jump out was that it would have to jump at a 90 degree angle and then shimmy through a hole in the eggcrate about half its size. It would also have to flop across the top of the egg crate and onto the floor. So how the hell does this happen? It was my second oldest fish and I had never seen it jump before even when the egg crate was off and my hand were in the tank moving rock around. Further more none of the other fish had ever harssed it. The fish was also my most expensive, most intersting, and my favorite.

 

wow, sorry to hear that man. Thats pretty crazy, he must have had a death wish!

 

That is the second fish I have lost this week. I lost a goby that was never seen again. What could have cause it to jump?

 

Any thing really, maybe something stressed it out while you where gone, no idea. They have a mind of there own, really sorry to hear that.

 

He was my smartest fish to knew when the light was gonna turn out and would go to his cave minutes before them. I was gone for two and got back last night.

 

i lost 2 yellowheaded jawfish to jumping also. mine had to do some crazy squirming to make it out of the tank, and they both did. i dont buy jawfish anymore.

 

My yellow wrasse was my best dude....he just kept jumping out...always saved by the bell so to speak...I had to leave for a trip...decided..eggcrate it is...the day Michail Jackson died my wife called and said she had two bad things to tell me...#1..Michail Jackson died today..my response...too bad..reep what ya sow...what else I asked...#2 the yellow wrasse jumped thru the eggcrate and was found dead on the floor....now THAT upset me..what an awful day that was....seems the blue Tang (Bad AZZ) just chased him to the point he must have shot straght up thru the hole???...all I can think of.
sometimes thats just the way it goes...Tang is on my hit list...too big for my 90.

LG

 

Sorry for your loss. IME I think there's not always a reason fish jump. They just do, sometimes. It can be stress, or any other motivator we're not aware of. I think that being human, we sometimes attribute to animals, our intelligence and ability to reason.

I've seen comments like "my crab killed my fish in a fit of rage," or, "the fish might have had a desire to die," or "this one kills just for fun," or something similar." IMO, in reality, we really can't know what the animal was thinking at the time. Do fish even have the ability to associate the action of "jumping" with dying? I have a feeling the answer is no. I don't think they're aware that the box of water in which they're housed, is surrounded by air, and that if they enter that zone, they're dead. It's human to reason, but I just don't think reasoning is an ability that fish possess.

Again, sorry for you prized loss.