Fish are flying the coop

Question
I have a 20 long tank.  Been goin strong for about 1 year...  I have had three fish suicides in the past month.  They keep trying to jump out of the tank and are successful at doing it.  My levels are perfect with nitrate at about 20...  I have the back covered as best as I can but they keep finding the holes...  The fish that have flown have been a diamond back goby, a jawfish, and a twin spot goby...  They were only in the tank for about 4 days before they decided to fly away...  What's goin on?

Also, is noise a problem for fish...  The hang on skimmer and filter is a bit noisy, but not overwhelming... I dunno...

Answer
Aaron,
The species that you lost are all known jumpers, especially when startled.  It would not be uncommon for any of these fish to jump while they are still trying to get used to a new environment.  Clearly they haven't settled in or gotten used to what is going on around them and sometimes even the smallest of things will scare them and cause them to flee.  Unfortunately in an aquarium as short as yours and with holes in the back of the tank they find their way out.

Two potential solutions.  One cover the back of the tank better so that there are not any holes for them to escape.  Or, if you don't want them to jump stop buying these types of species.

As for the noise.  Hard to say if your filters are causing enough noise to bother them, but any sound is amplified underwater and anything in excess can cause fish to stress.  For this reason I don't recommend fish tanks near speakers or TV's, etc.

Best of luck with your tank!

Regards,
Scott Johnson
Aquarium Crazy Fish
www.aquariumcrazyfish.com