A mover built to escape
The siamese algae eater is a strong, streamlined river fish that spends its day in near-constant motion, grazing algae from leaves, glass and stone with its sucker-like mouth. Two traits make it one of the trickiest community fish to move house with. First, it is fast - genuinely fast - and can outrun a net in open water until it exhausts itself against the glass. Second, it jumps, and it jumps well, usually in the exact moment a container lid is set down unlatched. Prepare for this fish by treating the lid as part of the equipment, not an afterthought, and by planning the catch around calm cornering rather than pursuit.
Before moving day
Choose a rigid, lidded container rather than a bag; an active fish this size damages bags and itself against soft walls. Stop feeding the day before the move to keep the travel water cleaner, but think ahead about food at the destination: a newly set-up tank has clean glass and fresh decor with none of the algae film this fish grazes all day, so pack its usual algae-based food where you can reach it on the first evening. If the algae eater shares its tank with slow or long-finned fish, move it separately, because a stressed algae eater in a confined container can turn pushy. Keep its filter media wet in tank water during the move, as with any fish, so the new tank stays stable.
The catch: corner, do not chase
Drain the tank to about half before you start. Lift out tall decor that gives the fish a racetrack, holding each piece over the water briefly in case the fish is resting against it. Then work with two nets: hold one large net still across a corner and use the second to guide the fish slowly toward it. Move at half the speed you want to; a siamese algae eater that is guided rarely panics, while one that is chased will eventually leap, and in a half-drained tank a leap can land it on the floor. The second the fish is in the travel container, the lid goes on, and the lid goes back on every single time the container is opened, even for a moment.
Settling in at the new home
Set the new tank up with its lid checked first: this is the fish that finds the gap around filter pipes and cable cut-outs, so cover openings before release, not after. Float the container to equalise temperature, then release the fish with the lights low. Offer a small portion of algae-based food the first evening and leave grazing surfaces - a stone or piece of wood from the old tank is ideal - within easy reach. A settled algae eater is back to its restless grazing within hours. Watch the surface line on the first night, when jumping is most likely, and check the floor around the tank in the morning if the fish is not visible. Handing out the day's jobs through KinsLe Care Teams - one person catching, one carrying, one rebuilding the tank - with each job marked complete as it is done keeps the move orderly when a fish this quick is involved.