Interesting ( at least for me )

[Ded1]

I own 6 clown loaches for many years now, and I never saw this. I feel I will look stupid but anyway.

Few hours ago I added one more power head to my tank to increase the water flow. It is almost 10 times tank volume. After I did that, my younger clowns started acting like never before.

First one, than second, stuck with, actually more like glue themselves on the alpha loach from each side and swim like that. For a moment there it looked like they are looking for eye contact or something from bigger loach mouth. Moments later, the same two youngsters did the same thing with second in charge loach. Both bigger loaches were little annoyed after a while. It reminded me on "baby whale stuck to its mother" picture in my head.

My first and only conclusion is, they are "scared" by the new stronger current and are following alpha loach like that. But in 6 years of owning loaches, I never saw that in swiming. I took two pictures with my mobile phone, sorry for bad quality, and feeling stupid, I am asking, what is this behavior?:

[chefkeith]

Some people call it shadowing. It's quite normal for the smaller clowns to do it.

[Ded1]

Some people call it shadowing. It's quite normal for the smaller clowns to do it.

Thanks. I like the term

[piggy4]

Hi Ded1, I think its a great question though as to the answer ? I feel that by asking questions like this is a way of learning for us all !

Some times little adjustments can lead to spawning in lots of different fish .

[newshound]

the little loaches probably have an easier time swimming after the larger loach breaks the flow of water with it's larger body.
Kinda like drafting another car or transport.

[Sixwing]

My dojos do this a lot. There isn't a lot of flow in my tank - it seems to be a feeding-time behavior, as I don't see it any other time. I wonder if they're catching the particles she blows out of her gills?

The peppered loaches will stick to the big dojo, too (or even the little one) but I have not seen the smaller peppers stick to the biggest one.

[Ded1]

I must say, all three ideas seems interesting and accepting to me.

First I thought it was " fear " from sudden new current, than It did seem to me like they were after something two bigger loaches "have" ( gill theory ), now the idea of larger clown breaking current for them...

It is not happening any more ( at least I didn't saw it ), will watch this evening.

Well I guess that is one of the things why we love loaches...they are really interesting fishes and deserve the best. Thank guys for sharing your opinions.