Six little clowns

[pavelow360]

I have a sort of dillema I need to solve. I have 5 occellaris clownfishes and 1 maroon clownfish and two tanks. One tank is a 16 gallon and the other a 41 gallon with 18 gallon cap. sump. I have had one of the occellaris in the 16 gallon for over a year now and lost the partner not to long ago to a floor surfing event. (looked into all possible reasons) I have a replacement from okinawa in quarantine at the moment. I also have 3 very small baby occellaris clowns that I plan on putting in the 41 gallon, this is where the maroon clown will reside as well (currently in quarantine). I know from reading that maroons do not like their own species at all and as such are hard to pair. A friend of mine had a maroon clown with what I believe was a clarkii , he was black with white stripes. They got along once the maroon established the fact that the anemone in the tank was his...lol So I am wondering if the my maroon will pumble my 3 baby occellaris in the 41 gallon? If I put all the fish in the tank and then the maroon? being the newbie, would this possible work? any advise welcome

[aquaph8]

I wouldn't put other clowns in with a maroon. It could be pretty ugly and its just not worth trying IMO.

[tcmfish]

If anything put all the ocellaris in the big tank and the maroon in the small tank.

So why do you have so many clowns, if you don't have the tanks for them?

[pavelow360]

If anything put all the ocellaris in the big tank and the maroon in the small tank.

So why do you have so many clowns, if you don't have the tanks for them?

This is one of my options but then that would only leave the dominant pair to possibly be a mating pair... I kind of want to give the dominant two in the baby 3 some a chance to be mated as well as the two older ones in a separate tank

The odd ball maroon was supposed to be paired with another maroon clown that I have... when I bought both maroons, they were in quarantine together and did not bother each other... one got to his tank first and when I put the second one with him... they did not get along... rendering him homeless... I have since built this 40 gallon where the 3 occellaris will go

[dtran01]

so, how did 3 ocellaris turn into 5 ocellaris? why do you have so many clowns with just two tanks?

inevitably there will eventually be fighting, especially with the maroon clown as he matures. maroons can be very aggressive as an adult.

[aquaph8]

Best option--get rid of some of them.

[jonathansruelas]

Best option--get rid of some of them.

plus 1. The mating pair will turn real ugly with the rest in a 41 gallon

[snorvich]

Yes, it seems as if you let impulse take over where reason would have prevented your problem. Reduce the number of clowns.

[pavelow360]

so, how did 3 ocellaris turn into 5 ocellaris? why do you have so many clowns with just two tanks?

inevitably there will eventually be fighting, especially with the maroon clown as he matures. maroons can be very aggressive as an adult.


look at the title of the thread, then read my initial post

[pavelow360]

unfortunately, just getting rid of the fish is not an option...thank you for your constructive criticism

[Beaun]

Troll?

[pavelow360]

Troll?

I thank the guy for his opinion and state that it is welcome but I am not taking the advice and now I am a troll... lol

[Beaun]

Last edited by pavelow360; Today at 08:38 AM.

That's not what it said before, but nice try.

[aquaph8]

I thank the guy for his opinion and state that it is welcome but I am not taking the advice and now I am a troll... lol

Your welcome. Unsubscribed, good day.

[pavelow360]

That's not what it said before, but nice try.

no, what does it say now? I thought better of my comment and decided to change it, now I understand why you said what you did

[snorvich]

Troll?

Probably.

[snorvich]

unfortunately, just getting rid of the fish is not an option...thank you for your constructive criticism

You are most welcome. Sorry, there are not any other real options that will not lose fish.

[Toddrtrex]

For a second I am going to pretend this is real.

First, if you put the maroon with any of your other clowns, you will end up with just a maroon. Second, if you you put more then 2 of the occellaris together, you will -- in time -- end up with just 2. Third trying to put the maroon in the 16 gallon would be a poor choice.

How is getting rid of the fish not an option? With what you are planning, you are going to end up killing quite a few clowns.

[ALH]

I'd like to add that the maroon would be too big for the 16g tank, so I would not consider that to be a good option IMO

[pavelow360]

Naysayers in my thread, I have had enough of the negativity, I am feeling pretty let down by the accusations and disrepect to my inquiry, you should take off the blinders for a while and think outside the proverbial box. With that being said, read the 4th post down... on this link... enough said for now


http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1914497

[Toddrtrex]

Let down??

I am let down that you are choosing to ignore all the posts from experienced fish keepers -- who took the time to try to help you, but you just want to hear that what you are going to attempt is a good thing.

As for that link, that isn't enough said for now. Having more then one pair of clowns per tank ends poorly 99% of the time. And as someone who has kept Maroons in the best (( a spawning pair )) I can tell you that you would end up with a dead occellaris if you tried to mix it with a maroon in a 16 gallon tank.

[pavelow360]

I can tell you that you would end up with a dead occellaris if you tried to mix it with a maroon in a 16 gallon tank.

Thank you for the reply, just to clarify, I never suggested that I was going to mix the maroon with occellaris in the 16 gallon, the two bigger occellaris will go in in the 16 gallon, sorry you misunderstood.

[Toddrtrex]

So you are telling me that putting 3 occellaris into a 41 -- which has an existing maroon -- is going to work out because of one post in a thread? I am sorry, but I can tell you that it isn't going to work out. First the maroon is not going to be happy about the 3 addition clowns. Second, even if they were all the same species, 4 clowns is 2 too many.

[pavelow360]

So you are telling me that putting 3 occellaris into a 41 -- which has an existing maroon -- is going to work out because of one post in a thread? I am sorry, but I can tell you that it isn't going to work out. First the maroon is not going to be happy about the 3 addition clowns. Second, even if they were all the same species, 4 clowns is 2 too many.

Todd,

I am not here to stir the pot or "troll" as other's said...I am not sure what I will do, but I understand the situation and I am not about to endanger these little guys. I have a falco hawk fish that was munching on chromis and I don't like him or the chromis but I stopped it from happening and am taking care of them even though I don't like either species particularly.

[pavelow360]

-- which has an existing maroon -- is going to work out because of one post in a thread?

I linked the post to say that what everyone is saying is not certain in all cases. I do not know the situation that enabled that person to have occellaris living at peace with a maroon but I have also as mentioned, seen it in my friend's tank. To me, it is possible. I am re-thinking and re-thinking...my scenarios are proposed... nothing is set in stone.

[Crabber]

First, if you put the maroon with any of your other clowns, you will end up with just a maroon. Second, if you you put more then 2 of the occellaris together, you will -- in time -- end up with just 2. Third trying to put the maroon in the 16 gallon would be a poor choice.


Couldn't have said it better myself.

There isn't any negativity in this thread, just care and concern for the fish. Their lives are in your hands and by doing what your proposing will give them a slim probability. There's always a chance, but do you want to risk it? Having the fish live in fear of one another? You can always try it, I love thinking outside the box, but you'll need an immediate action plan if things go south. That would be finding new homes for most of them, which you said isn't a possibility, so therefore since you have no plan B, I wouldn't try A.

[Dino]

Pavelow -

If you're not even going to listen to the great advice that has been given why are you even bothering asking? There isn't a bunch of scenarios to ponder, you have two options - get rid of some clowns or setup more tanks. Anything else will result in the death of at least some of the clowns. Its extremely difficult to even get more than a single pair of "docile" ocellaris to coexist in a 500 gallon tank, much less what you are proposing.

[snorvich]

Pavelow -

Let me explain why you are getting the reaction that you are getting. You say you have a "sort of dilemma", but it is one of your own making because you clearly did not research the animals that you are trying to keep. Then you offer "solutions" which reinforce the lack of research because they won't work. Finally you adopt an "attitude" about what people here are telling you. First of all, lose the attitude! Secondly, as Dino says, you have two solutions: fewer clown fish or more tanks. It is very simple. When you continue trying to defend your "solutions" people, myself included, think you are trolling, or roiling the waters.

[der_wille_zur_macht]

Pavelow, with all due respect (and I really, honestly mean that), the "negativity" you're getting in this thread is from people who care about both your fish, and you - we don't want your fish to die, and we don't want you to be disappointed if/when that happens. That's why we're replying in the manner we are - because we care. We're not here to shoot you down, we're here to give a reliable answer to your original question based on years/decades of experience.

That said, is everything we're saying certain in all cases? Arguably not. Does that mean it's a reasonable idea to test the limits? Clearly, in this thread, most experienced aquarists are saying "no." If you had a wild mountain lion that you kept in a small pen, would you toss in a few 6 week old kittens? Most people would say no. That's about the equivalent of putting young nonspecific clowns in a small tank that a maroon already "owns." Sure, you might get "lucky" and find that the kittens are able to scramble around and hide in the corners well enough that the lion doesn't attack them, but - even if that DOES happen, what sort of quality of life are the kittens likely to have? And, do you really need to toss the kittens in to "find out" that the hungry lion will eat them, or is it simply reasonable to assume that it will happen, and make other arrangements for homing your kittens?

I am sorry that you find yourself in this situation, and this will probably sound like I'm wagging my finger and saying "told you so" but, honestly, this is why it's a good idea to research BEFORE you acquire fish. In other words, it's best to ask these questions when the fish are still at a retailers, not when they're in quarantine. That way, you're not in a position where you have to "deal" with where to put the fish, since they're not yet yours.

[VacavilleFC3S]

people like this is why i quit working at LFS, they just don't want to listen and when you tell them correct information they go complain to your manager.

i say we let him learn from his own experience and have a few clowns die on him