Adding new clown

Joiningsession · Apr 1, 2020

Hey all, I have had a Percula Misbar in my 10g for over 2 weeks now, made sure my biological filtration handled it well and went to this LFS to grab another clown. Well I came home with a chilled frostbite ocellaris, acclimated and added. The first 3 minutes was okay. Swimming with each other etc.. next thing I know the new Ocellaris is bullying the current Percula. Both are about the same size, original Percula might be 1/4 inch bigger if that (both are a little over an inch). Is this a normal behavior or something I should keep an eye on? Thanks in advance

Hemmdog · Apr 1, 2020

You shouldn’t mix species. They will kill each other in a 10gal.

DeniseAndy · Apr 1, 2020

They are two different species, but these two will cross breed. Probably getting to know each other. Keep an eye on them. It is normal for them to figure out who will become female.

Edit: Missed that they are in a 10g. Could be a problem. No where for the lesser dominant one to go. Could lead to death.

Fishy212 · Apr 1, 2020

Keep an eye on them. 10 gallons is quite small for a non bonded pair in my opinion. One of them will transition into a female and will become bigger and more dominant. You can always get an in tank acclimation box or refugium and house the aggressive one in there Incase they do start fighting. Kind of like a timeout. Hope this helps

TheShrimpNibbler · Apr 1, 2020

If it doesn’t get better soon, you may need to put the bigger one in an acclimation box for a while. They could just be figuring out who will be the female, but the aggression might get worse. If it doesn’t get better, you may need to replace the bigger one.

Joiningsession · Apr 1, 2020

Hemmdog I understand the don't mix species rule, I was just under the impression with occys and percs it was acceptable and borderline okay. But from what it sounds like from others is it probably would be okay but the size of the tank could be an issue.

Update: after about 20 minutes the attacking stopped and for the last hour or so the new Ocellaris is basically staying on top of the Percula keeping it by the rocks, sand, walls etc. Haven't seen them nip at each other.

This is a learning curve to me as the only other clowns I ever had was a bonded pair when someone gave them to me. If it stays the same or worsens I can put one in an acclimation box possibly or return one, but how long should I wait to see if they are just figuring each other out etc?