Guppy fish are easy to take care of, and most aquarists love to add them to their aquarium. But, aquarists found some common issues while having guppy fish, of which one is guppy fish jumping out of the tank. So, Do guppy jump out of the tank? Let us find out.
Guppies do jump out of the tank because of poor quality water, less living space, and aggressive tankmates. However, guppies also jump out of the tank to explore. Putting an aquarium lid on the tank is the simplest way to prevent your guppies from jumping out of the tank.
This article will discuss the reason and prevention of guppy fish jumping out of the tank. So, let us get into it.
Contents
Why guppy jumps out of the tank
Guppy can jump out of the tank when under stress.
Your guppy can come under stress because of numerous reasons like:
- Inadequate water condition
- Inappropriate and unstable water parameters.
- Aggressive tankmates
- Overcrowded tank
- Poor supply of food
- Illness
There can be other reasons, like female guppy is pregnant.
Guppy will usually hide when they are under stress and can even try to jump out of the tank.
When there is an aggressive fish like angelfish is present in their tank, guppy will try to save themselves from them and can jump out of the tank.
Other factors like illness, poor water quality, unstable water temperature, and inadequate food supply can make your guppy fish come under stress and jump out of the tank.
You must know that guppies also jump to explore.
So, if your tank is in perfect condition and your guppy fish is jumping even after that, then the simple explanation behind this issue is they want to explore.
What are the reasons for guppy fish jumping out of the tank?
There can be numerous reasons behind your guppy fish jumping out of the tank:
- Guppy fish want to explore
- Poor water quality
- Stress
- Overcrowded tank
- Presence of aggressive tankmates
- Inadequate and unstable water parameters.
Guppy fish want to explore
Usually, fish jumps because of three reasons:
- To save themselves from predators.
- To catch their food (Insects).
- To avoid any barrier keeping them from breeding or other reasons.
However, when it comes to guppy fish, these all are not the explanation for jumping out from the tank.
Guppy fish jump out of the tank to explore.
Guppy fish will prepare to jump by first backing up and then hurdling themselves into the air.
Putting an aquarium lid on the tank is the only way to prevent this issue.
Poor water quality
Poor water quality can be a primary reason behind your guppy fish jumping out of the tank.
Poor water quality will make your guppy fish come under stress.
Inadequate water quality can result in a spike of ammonia and other harmful toxins in your guppies tank.
Guppy fish can suffer from various diseases and parasites like ich and dropsy because of inappropriate water quality.
Guppy fish suffering from an illness will come under stress over time and can jump out of the tank because of this.
Also, poor and dirty water lacks oxygen, and guppy fish will suffocate in water without oxygen.
Suffocated guppy fish can take a step of jumping out of the tank.
Stress
Stress can lead to life-threatening conditions for your guppy.
Your guppy can come under stress because of various reasons like inadequate water conditions, overcrowded tank, illness, physical injury, and when the female guppy is pregnant.
Stressed guppy will usually show hiding behavior like hiding at the bottom of the tank but can also jump out of the tank because of stress.
Also read: Are My Guppies Stressed?
Overcrowded tank
Too many guppies in a tank can be why your guppy fish jumped out of the tank.
An overcrowded tank will make your guppy fish uncomfortable, and they will not be able to swim freely.
Also, too many guppies will result in more waste production, and your tank will get dirty sooner than the regular time.
Too many guppies will also make your guppies suffer for oxygen as oxygen will be deficient in an overcrowded and dirty tank.
Presence of aggressive tankmates.
The primary reason for your guppy fish coming under stress is the presence of aggressive tankmates.
Aggressive tankmates will constantly chase your guppy fish, and they will be under stress.
Your guppy fish will try to hide from aggressive fish and can also jump out of the tank to protect themselves.
Inadequate and unstable water parameters
Poor water quality and inadequate water temperature can also be a reason behind your guppy fish jumping out of the tank.
With inadequate water temperature, unstable water temperature is also evenly responsible for guppy jumping out of the tank.
Inadequate and unstable water parameters make your guppy fish come under stress.
Guppy suffering from constant stress will be prone to various diseases and parasites.
Guppy suffering from illness or stress will try to hide and can even jump out of the tank.
Also read: Best pH Level For Guppies.
How to prevent guppy fish from jumping out of the tank?
You should take care of these things to prevent your guppy fish from jumping out of the tank:
- Provide adequate water parameters
- Ensure good quality water
- Avoid adding non-compatible fish to your guppies tank.
- Don’t make your guppies tank overcrowded.
- Place an aquarium lid on your guppy fish tank.
Provide adequate water parameters
The primary thing to prevent your guppy fish from coming under stress and jumping out of the tank is providing adequate water parameters.
Make sure to provide a stable water temperature with ideal water parameters.
Unstable water temperature can make your guppy fish stressed and prone to various diseases and parasites.
| Particulars | Guppy Fish Requirement |
|---|---|
| Water temperature | 72-82 °F |
| Water pH level | 6.8-7.8 |
Also read: Guppy Fish Minimum Water Temperature
Ensure good quality water
Ensuring good quality water to your guppies will help prevent your guppies from jumping out of the tank.
Guppy fish living in poor water quality will get affected by various diseases and parasites.
Living in a tank with poor water quality will also make your guppy come under stress, and they can try to jump out of the tank.
Avoid adding aggressive fish to your guppies tank.
Aggressive fish in your guppies tank is the primary reason behind stressed guppy.
Aggressive tankmates will constantly chase your guppy fish and try to hunt them down.
Because of being constantly chased, your guppy fish will come under stress.
Being under stress constantly because of aggressive fish like angelfish will make your guppy fish prone to diseases and parasites.
Also read: Can Guppy Fish Live With Angelfish?
Don’t make your guppies tank overcrowded.
An overcrowded tank can come with many problems from which your guppy can suffer.
Your guppies will not be able to live and swim comfortably in an overcrowded tank.
An overcrowded tank will result in more production of waste.
Oxygen will be deficient in an overcrowded tank.
Beneficial bacteria require oxygen to eliminate ammonia from the tank, and in the absence of oxygen, they will not be able to eliminate ammonia.
Ammonia spike in your guppies aquarium will make your guppy fish ill and come under stress.
In such a situation, your guppy fish can take a step of jumping out of the tank.
So always make sure to prevent your tank from being overcrowded with guppies and other tankmates.
You should follow the one-inch one-gallon rule, one inch of fish per one gallon of water.
Also read: How Many Guppy In A 20 Gallon Tank?
Place an aquarium lid on your guppy fish tank.
Placing an aquarium lid on your guppy fish tank is the simplest way to prevent your guppy fish from jumping out of the tank.
Your guppy fish will be unable to pull off the aquarium lid even when they try to jump out of the tank.
Putting an aquarium lid will ensure your guppies’ safety when you are not always around your guppies.
Conclusion:
There can be various reasons behind guppy fish jumping out of the tank. However, the primary reasons are poor water quality, aggressive tankmates, overcrowded tanks, and poor oxygen levels.
You must know that guppies do jump to explore.
So, if your tank condition is idle and guppy fish is jumping even after that, the reason behind such action is that they want to explore.
The best way to prevent your guppy fish from jumping out of the tank is to put an aquarium lid on the tank.
Also, make sure to provide ideal water parameters and good quality water; avoid adding aggressive fish and overcrowding your guppy’s tank to prevent your guppies from jumping out of the tank.
Reference: ScienceDaily, PHYS, NCBI, ResearchGate