Aggressive / Bully Clown Fish

[bravotango]

I've had a couple of clownfish in a Fluval EVO 13. since October 1st (about 1.5 months). They were both tiny when they first came home - about 1/2 to 3/4". Since the first day in the tank, the slightly larger Clown has been bullying the smaller one. Now, the slightly larger Clown is noticeably larger than the other - i'd say 20% larger.

The bullying behavior is mostly chasing and harassing the other smaller Clown. Over the last two weeks, the behavior has escalated to the larger Clown actively trying to prevent the smaller from getting access to food while feeding. I interpret this as the larger Clown trying to starve the smaller one.

There are no other fish in this tank. It's just the two clowns.
They are fed once per day.
The smaller Clown doesn't engage in any fighting. Instead, it swims away and occasionally will turn to face the other Clown and then swim away.

Questions:
Is this behavior with escalating aggression over 1.5 months considered normal pairing behavior?
If yes to the above, how long should I expect this behavior to last?
If no to the above, do we simply have a jerk clown that needs to find a new home?


Thanks for taking the time to respond.

 

[vetteguy53081]

It is a display of hierarchy and being done by the larger which is a female. Not unusual for female to bully, chase fish to a corner, steal all the food and hog every anemone.
separation- placing female in an acclimation box or sump for a couple of weeks often helps

 

[Lyss]

I read all the posts like this and think I got lucky w/my pair -- my LFS randomly netted 2 for me out of the tank, one a little larger than the other, and they took to each other right away. I noticed the larger one pushing the smaller one around in the bag, and that kinda continued as they progressed in my tank, but the smaller one just accepted it nbd. Once in a while I would see him turn up w/a little bit of a torn fin, but nothing worth worrying about. He pretty much just accepted his place and by now they're fully paired.

She does take first dibs on food but doesn't prevent my little guy from getting any -- he's kind of fallen into a feeding time rhythm where he swims behind her and catches what she misses, and does just fine.

+1 on the acclimation box, but I never did and just let them resolve things on their own since the dominant behavior never got scary enough to warrant the box.

 

[bravotango]

Thank you for the responses.

How long should I expect this behavior to last?

Since this is a Fluval EVO 13.5 AIO, I don't have a sump. I also don't have an acclimation box.

 

[JNalley]

Thank you for the responses.

How long should I expect this behavior to last?

Since this is a Fluval EVO 13.5 AIO, I don't have a sump. I also don't have an acclimation box.

You can get a magnetized acclimation box like this one:

Tanklimate Acclimation Box Nano (6 x 4 x 4) - Eshopps

Shop The Best Saltwater Aquarium Equipment & Supplies at Saltwater Aquarium. We Carry Everything you will Need for your Fish Tank.

www.saltwateraquarium.com

It's hard to say exactly how long the behavior will last honestly, it depends on when the hierarchy is established. I have almost the exact same story as you, but my larger one doesn't sound as aggressive as yours. The little one should figure it out and be able to eat, but if it's getting worse over time and you're worried about it, grab the acclimation box above and use that for a little while to give the small one a break. But honestly, animals are animals, and nature is nature, this is how it works in their kingdom, sometimes it's just best to let it be.