I've got a serial killer in my fish tank but i dont know who it is.?

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For that past two years my tank has been peaceful and i haven't had any fish attacking others until my mom brought home 4 new fish, a gourami, 2 silver dollars, and a fish that kind of looks like rosy tetra but has semi long flowy tail (i don't know that name of it). She knows nothing about fish and just bought them because "they looked cool". They seem to only be attacking in the night time so im unsure of which fish it is.
I want to know which fish it is so i can get rid of it. Got any ideas as to who the culprit is?

If more details are needed just say so and ill add more.


Thanks :]
Its not a betta.

And i know its other fish doing it because all the finns are chewed off.
I have a black widow tetra, 2 serpae tetras, a small school of glowfish tetras, 6 platies, a loach, and a sucker fish (i dont know the exact name of it sorry.)
Plus the fish listed above.

All of my red eyed tetras have been killed and now one of my platies has a torn up/bitten tail.
It might be early in the morning that it happens actually..
See, my tank has night lights and my mom turns the regular lights on at about 6 every morning and then a few hours later i get up and feed them. Its usually then that i find the half eaten fish. 2 of them i had to kill myself because i couldnt stand to watch the platies sit there and pick at it while it tried to swim way and hide in the plants without fins.
pleco is short for plecostomus right?

Hmmm maybe. But why would he all of a sudden start doing this? Ive had him just as long as my red eyes and have never had a problem like this.
Ill take a picture of it real fast and maybe you guys can put a name on it.
 
why did your mom get these fish just because they looked cool those fish are not good fish to keep with the fish you have they are to big and will eat all your other fish get them out of there your mom should of checked with the pet store people that they would get on with your fish you have she did not do that it is your moms folt no offence.
 
I think that the 4th new fish with the flowing tail is probably a 'Paradise' fish (gourami) - Paradise fish are highly aggressive.
Male Siamese Fighters are agressive only to other male Siamese Fighters - they are not serial killers. A single 'Fighter' can be kept in a community aquarium. I think the 4th one is the culprit. Why dont you take a picture and post it on a Forum or show it to your local fish dealer.
 
You could try taking all of the fish except 1 fish from the new bunch and isolating them for about 2 days. Keep a record of the fish in the main tank. Then take turns taking out fish. Then whatever fish had the most number of lost fish is the killer. Btw, I like the " Serial Killer " part. That made me laugh. :)
 
So, the murders didn't begin until the new fish came, right? Have any of the new ones died?

Do you see injuries on the dead fish? It could be something else, if not.

Please tell about all the fish in the tank and which ones have died, old ones or new ones, that might help determine. :)
 
Its probably the gourami... But Im not sure. My gouramis only really bother other fish during the day.

What other fish do you have? What kind of attacks are they? And do you have a pleco?

Ive got my money on the pleco doing the night attacks, and the serpae tetras nipping fins.
 
Reading the wikipedia entry about gourami it could be him...

Though often considered peaceful, they can kill most other smaller or long finned fish. This usually does not apply to the common types as mentioned above. They shred other fishes' fins to the point that the victim can't swim and dies. The males of many members of this family like to spar, thus caution must be taken when keeping males together.

Depending on species, male gourami may be fin nippers and will bother other fish in the tank. In some species in particular, such as the Siamese fighting fish, when two male gourami are put in a tank together they will fight constantly. Other more peaceful gourami such as the tri-spot may show mild-moderate signs of aggression, but are usually able to live in fair peace together. Female gourami don't bother other fish and usually sit alone in the corner. Male gourami will ignore many species, such as danios, mollies, silver dollars, and Plecostomus catfish, but will often show agression toward species with long, flowing fins like male guppies and bettas.
 
The rosy tetra looking thing is most likely a Beta. Beta's are also known as Chinese Fighting Fish and are HIGHLY aggressive to other fish. There are called fighters for a reason. They look like this but come in different colors: http://collegeishard.tv/blog/beta%20fish.jpg
If it isn't that fish then it is probably the gourami's. They are known to attack other fish but they are normally calm.
 
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