Directions?!

[Seagars]

So I have a 150g tank with big nem and current additional fish are blue hippo and 4 wrasses. I am thinking I want a harem of clowns. Is this advised and if so how many? Long story but I about 3 months before adding fish to tank. Also just wondering if it is better or not to have the nem for them to eventually host also.

[mnchartier]

What kind of anemone?

[Sugar Magnolia]

In that size tank only 2 clowns are advised. Once clowns mature and pair up they will kill off any other clowns in the tank.

[raythepilot]

What is a big nem?
I think it is possible in a 150 gal tank to have 2 clown colonies but I've never tried it.

Clowns tend to stick close to their hosts and I bet with the right choice of anemone and clowns you could do two colonies but you are going to need a lot of experience setting up this biotype.

I'd try a haddoni with clarkii clowns. The big nem may eat some of your expensive fish so watch out.

[D-Nak]

What kind of anemone?

+1. Your choice of anemone and clowns will impact your success rate. For example, if you choose BTAs and a maroon clowns, then you can't have a harem because maroon clowns are notoriously aggressive and will kill other clowns. Percula or ocellaris are the best choice for this type of set up.

In that size tank only 2 clowns are advised. Once clowns mature and pair up they will kill off any other clowns in the tank.

The OP is referring to a "harem" style tank where there are quite a few clowns -- dozens of them -- in one tank. Typically what happens is that there is a female and a dominant male, then smaller fish that are tolerated by the two fish. If you ever watch videos of clowns in the wild, you can see this occurring -- a larger pair, and smaller juvenile clowns.

What is a big nem?
I think it is possible in a 150 gal tank to have 2 clown colonies but I've never tried it.

Clowns tend to stick close to their hosts and I bet with the right choice of anemone and clowns you could do two colonies but you are going to need a lot of experience setting up this biotype.

I'd try a haddoni with clarkii clowns. The big nem may eat some of your expensive fish so watch out.

If you are referring to clown colonies as two pairs of clowns, that's typically NOT recommended. One pair will kill off the other pair if they can be seen. Clowns that have their natural host anemone do tend to stick close, but this won't stop an aggressive pair from taking out another pair of clowns who also have their natural host anemone, even if it's on the other end of the tank.
....

Here are my suggestions when attempting a harem tank:

1. Buy baby clowns from the same clutch. Get them when they are young so that they grow up together.

2. Have multiple natural host anemones so that the clowns can move from nem to nem. This spreads out aggression.

3. Only keep one species of clowns together. I keep Darwins and Onyx together, but the Darwins are a lot younger so it seems to work.

4. Watch the videos from BRS on how to do it. Here's one of them:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xK3RtwRVMVU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

And here's my thread of my harem tank:

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2572833

All is still going well and the clowns are growing and coloring up nicely.

With a 150 gallon tank, it can be done, you just need to plan it out and stick to the plan.

[Seagars]

it is that video in addition to starting over is why i am considering trying to do this. thank you

[mnchartier]

+1. Your choice of anemone and clowns will impact your success rate. For example, if you choose BTAs and a maroon clowns, then you can't have a harem because maroon clowns are notoriously aggressive and will kill other clowns. Percula or ocellaris are the best choice for this type of set up.


What about ones from Amphiprion? Like pink skunks?

[D-Nak]

What about ones from Amphiprion? Like pink skunks?

I think all clowns are from the genus Amphiprion, correct? The natural host for pink skunks are H. crispa, H. magnifica, M. doriensis, and S. gigantea. I've never tried a harem with them, but I've seen videos showing immature clowns with the dominant pair, so I'm guessing it's possible.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uX2UuPMyIYQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/v3o4WtxFbcU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[CoralsAddiction]

I think all clowns are from the genus Amphiprion, correct?

Pretty much except Maroon (Premnas). I never really understood why it belonged to its own group instead of being called Amphipirion like the rest of clowns.

[D-Nak]

Pretty much except Maroon (Premnas). I never really understood why it belonged to its own group instead of being called Amphipirion like the rest of clowns.

OOPS... duh, of course I should know Premnas. Brain fart. Thanks for reminding me.