Seasonal changes in goldfish

[jds627]

Seasonal changes in goldfish

I am wondering if any of you have noticed any seasonal changes in goldfish

Any changes in the behaviors of your fish as the seasons change? While my tank is indoors and thus not effected (much) by the change of temperature outside, it seems like my two fish seem a little less active during the winter. My hypothesis is that there are several other major differences besides the temperature. The fish can sense that the season has changed.

Does weather affect goldfish?

Seasonal changes in goldfish behavior could be caused more or less natural light throughout the day. Seasonal changes could also be caused by the warmer or the colder temperatures, and possibly barometric drop or rise in pressure

Does having more or less natural light affect goldfish?

The magnetic field is different because of the proximity to the sun, the barometer is different, and the light from the sun is at a different angle (as well as the difference in sunrise and sunset times). Does this sound like a possibility and has anyone else observed similar occurrences? (I live on the eastern seaboard of the US, Maryland)

Seasonal changes in goldfish besides spawning

[Venus]

Your question is fascinating. I’ve never given it any thought whatsoever. I was thinking the shorter days, the colder tank water led to the quietness of the fish in winter. Although it’s true we keep our indoor tanks warm, my tank water was difficult to keep warm in the winter in the old house, but I’ve recently moved, and even though the room is well insulated and the water temps are consistently at warmer temps; still no spawning, and very little activity. I live in Missouri, which of course is the midwest, so I’m not sure of the variances of the barometer. To be quite honest, now that you mention it, what the heck is a barometric reading anyway? Did I say that right? LOL

[jds627]

The barometer measures atmospheric pressure. I am wondering if their lateral lines can detect those kinds of changes in pressure and the magnetic field. :wacko:

[Venus]

Of course. I knew that (cough cough) It makes perfect sense, and I think you’re on to something. I’m excited to hear someone refer to the lateral line. Most everyone says the swim bladder organ is sensitive to vibration, but when I lost my old school due to some blasting by a scrap metal company down the road, none of them had swimming issues, but one by one the lateral lines were injured; some more severe than others, but the injuries lead to their death. Since then, I’ve been fascinated by the lateral line and it’s function, which is extensive

I found a few articles; one too complex for the average person to understand, but this page says it in plain English Trails.com

Read it, if you want some confirmation on your theory

So, I’m going to start watching the weather and listen up for the report. I have a thermostat for outdoor and indoor temps, but no barometric pressure readings. I’ve seen them though. Let’s keep a little log here. Maybe we can match up our fish’s behavior according to these readings….very cool B-)

[Venus]

By the way, even though fish don’t have ears to hear, my fish are extremely sensitive to the vibrations of sound. My fish come when I call them, even if they’re sleeping in the drain tile, and can’t see me. Let me know what you think after reading the article

[jds627]

Fish actually do have ears, they are internal bone structures called otoliths. They do not need external ears because there bodies are about the same density of water so sound is easily transmitted through the body of the fish without an orifice. They cannot hear clearly like we do, but they can hear. And I LOVE it when my fishies come to my voice! They get so excited! :heart:

[Venus]

Good to know about the internal ears. It makes sense though. External ears aren’t designed for creatures that come from a water world. Agreed, I love it when my fish respond to voice. Funny thing is, the cats come running too lol

[jds627]

OMG! I just found out that goldfish have teeth!!! hahahahahahaha. That’s adorable. I have seen them chew, but I thought they were just trying to mash the food with their mouth. :yahoo:

[Venus]

LOL One of our admin has quite a collection; if she’s still keeping them. Every time she turns around she finds a goldfish tooth in her dirty water tub. Can you believe it? Somewhere around here is a photo of one of her fish’s tooth. I knew they had teeth, but I didn’t realize they came out and grew back, much like shark teeth

To keep my grandsons dirty hands out of my tank, I told em about the teeth LOL

[Anonymous]

I have about 100 teeth in my collection now. A few days ago I saw my butterfly lose a tooth as I stood there. It just fell out of her open mouth and sank to the bottom of the tank. :yahoo: Of course I grabbed it and added it to my collection. I find four or five of them every time I vacuum the tank. I first discovered them in the tub I did my semi cycle in. Once I knew what they looked like I started finding them in the gravel in my tank. It’s like a treasure hunt for me. I guess I’m just that crazy. lol

This is a great discussion! Goldfish spawn as the weather warms and days lengthen, too. Mine have been spawning off and on for the past three weeks. It’s fun to see, but along with it comes some fin damage. My fish were pretty active through the winter, so I don’t notice a big difference in that way, but the spawning is definitely a higher level of activity… all that chasing. It makes sense to me that they would be sensitive to the changing seasons, length of day and changes in magnetic fields. When you think of marine fish, like salmon, that know when to head into fresh water rivers to spawn, all of them at the same time… though our fish are domesticated, they’re still fish and they respond to natural changes just like wild fish do, I would bet.

[Anonymous]

That’s an interesting article, Venus. I didn’t know about the hair-like neuromasts in the lateral line, or the canal. No wonder they’re so sensitive to vibration. Now to go and read about fish ears. :yes:

Here’s a bunch of fascinating info on Wikipedia about fish sensory systems. It says that carp hear with their swim bladders, that act much like a hearing aid and that they hear well! Since goldfish descend from carp, I’d guess this is the case with them. There’s great info on the lateral line, sense of smell, etc.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensory_systems_in_fish

[Venus]

I’m not a big fan of Wikipedia. First of all, I hate reading a paragraph loaded with links that light up as you read; drives me crazy; no can read :wacko:

[Venus]

I’m going to start keeping a barometer reading journal here, and then describe my fish’s behavior

March 6/16 Barometer: 30.14 inHg. steady Fish are somewhat lazy today, feeding for about an hour, and then resting until the next feeding. This seems to be the norm these days, but keep in mind, my fish are in a stock tank and can’t see me. Fish in an aquarium, much like dogs and cats get excited when we go to the kitchen, just like our fish behind glass may get excited and stir when you walk close to the tank

[Venus]

3/7/16 Barometer: 29.82 inHg. steady

I’ll record daily for a few days cause there’s a storm coming in; should be interesting

[Venus]

Close to the same on 3/8. Fish are pretty much the same. Not a lot of activity. I wonder if they’re just homesick?

[Anonymous]

I thought this was interesting and it would guess it applies to goldfish since they’re descended from carp.

“Hearing is well-developed in carp, which have the Weberian organ, three specialized vertebral processes that transfer vibrations in the swim bladder to the inner ear.”

The Weberian apparatus is a set of tiny bones the grow from the first few vertebrae to connect the swim bladder to the inner ear. The swim bladder acts as an amplifying chamber for sound waves that the Weberian organ transmits to the inner ear, making sounds more audible. I had no idea that the swim bladder had to do with hearing. Pretty cool!

[Venus]

3/10 barometric reading for today is 29.97

You may have missed an earlier post. I’ve always said the swim bladder organ was the conductor of sound, sensitive to vibration. I read it somewhere and it made perfect sense. If you remember the blasts that killed off my old school one by one; not one of them suffered from any floating or sinking issues. Their swimming was normal. It was the lateral line that was injured, suggesting the vibrations and sounds of the blast injured it. I could tell because you could see the trail of blood beneath the tissue following the line itself, and in some cases, it looked extensively damaged. I wish not I had kept better records and taken more photos for an article, but it didn’t occur to me at the time. I had no idea what was happening. It took close to two years to relate the blasts to the dying fish

Did you read that article I posted about lateral lines? Trails End

I’ve found a few other articles suggesting the same, but a little too scientific to enjoy the read

[Katrina911]

I collect cat whiskers…not the same is it….. I’d like to see a pic of these 100 teeth in a pattern shaped like a fish. :good:

[Venus]

Barometer 29.68

The fish have been a little livelier these past few days; coincidence?

[Venus]

Barometric pressure is rising slightly, and is at 30.17

The fish are much livelier these past few days. If this is affecting them, I would have thought the fall, not the rise would increase their activity, so maybe it’s not affecting them at all. Their water table was really low when I first set up the tank at the new place, and now it’close to back to normal. I’m wondering if the low table made them nervous. We’ll never really know, but it’s interesting to contemplate, and I’ll continue watching barometric pressure off and on

[Author]

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