Saturday, February 28, 2009

Red Devil Rules


Red Devils are beautiful and mean.
For the unfamiliar, imagine a large, neon orange, doubledecker goldfish* with the personality of a pit bull. This their agenda:
  1. Uproot and destroy every plant.
  2. Topple any decorations.
  3. Rough up heaters, filter intakes, and airstones.
  4. Shove all the gravel into a corner to make a hideout.
  5. Any fish who swims near the hideout is the enemy and must die.**
  6. Any human who walks by the tank is an enemy and must die.
(Seriously, they charge at you like a bull. Stand your ground and so will they, in full I'm gonna pound you! fury.)
Rule six has some exceptions:
  1. If said human offers food, he is in fact your best friend.
  2. Train your new friend to give you food by splashing water to get his attention.
  3. Let him/her pet you and boast that you're "just like a dog."
  4. That being said, your friend's friends are the enemy and must die.

Now there's a fish with personality!

*actually they're not closely related to goldfish (not even in the same order).
Red Devils are from the same family as Angelfish (freshwater), Discus, Tilapia and Oscars.

** some people house them with other fish, especially when they're younger, but I think it's risky. If I were a fish, I would not want this guy to be my neighbor.
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8 comments:

  1. Sally5:45 PM

    So much insight into fish thinking here, but damn I am so constantly envious of your amazing use of testures in your illustrations.

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  2. walterworld8:15 PM

    Now that's a fish with attitude!

    Thanks for the fun post.

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  3. Linda Davick9:19 PM

    Nice pictures and words! Scary too!

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  4. Sally5:50 AM

    I meant TEXtures.

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  5. Namowal (Jennifer Bourne)2:13 PM

    Thanks Sally,
    I probably mentioned this before, but I discovered the texture thing by accident- I'm a "what does this button" type who got lucky.

    Hi Walterworld,
    I forgot to mention another facet of Red Devil attitude- they win the most likely to you in the face when netted and bagged. It's as if they can't believe someone got the better of them.

    Hi Linda,
    Red Devils are scary if you're another fish, but humans are safe. They put up a tough act, but I never had one bite me. Speaking of biting, I've known a few people who owned piranhas (not legal in Ca.) and they never got attacked either. Go figure.

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  6. savingpets6:51 PM

    Hi TOTR!

    You seem to have had both & I'm trying to make a decision - so your thoughts would be appreciated...

    Red Devil or Oscar?

    :)shel

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  7. Namowal (Jennifer Bourne)8:09 PM

    Shel,
    Actually I've never kept either in my home, but I've looked after them back in the days when I worked at the tropical fish shop.

    Red Devils were more aggressive than Oscars- more likely to charge at you when you walked by the tank, for example, and were more likely to rearrange the tank to their liking. Some people find this amusing, others find it annoying. I've heard that the Red Devil is more likely to bite, but have never been bitten myself.
    Oscars seem to be more mellow and friendly (to their owners).
    One warning- both fish grow rather large, so unless you have a very big tank, they'll outgrow their home. It's sometimes tough to find a home for the larger ones. The local shop may not have room for it- or may prefer to reserve their tank space for smaller fish that are easier to sell. So if you buy either fish, make sure you have room. :)

    Good luck!

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  8. savingpets5:26 AM

    Thanks Namowal!

    :)

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I dislike typing the quasi-legible words too, but without them it's Spam City, Sorry!