Clownfish acting strange??

[Luckyduck]

So this guy has always been a little weird. Hangs out in corners or at the top of the tank sometimes. Maybe it's nothing and I'm just overreacting but I find it extra strange he's just sitting at the bottom not moving much. I fed and he popped right up swam around just fine and ate up the food then back to the corner. Maybe he needs a friend (another clownfish)? He doesn't have an anemone and lives with an Orchid Dottyback. Everything else, corals & snails in the tank seem to be doing just fine. I have been dosing Microbacter Clean and Razor Marine and it does say on the bottle can make your fish act strangely. I think I'm going to cut back but I have been using it for a week and haven't seen an "issue" untill now. Hopefully you can view the video.

 

[BeltedCoyote]

If he’s not breathing hard and is still eating, I’d just keep an eye on him.

clowns are weird man. The first week or so that I had my pair, my male would jam himself between the intake pipe of my HOB and the corner up the tank, head facing down, and sleep. He eventually found the pvc pipe the female slept in. But yeah. Freaked me out the first time, stumbling to the bathroom on the middle of the night, looked in the tank and thought he was dead lol

edit: video didn’t work

 

[Luckyduck]

If he’s not breathing hard and is still eating, I’d just keep an eye on him.

clowns are weird man. The first week or so that I had my pair, my male would jam himself between the intake pipe of my HOB and the corner up the tank, head facing down, and sleep. He eventually found the pvc pipe the female slept in. But yeah. Freaked me out the first time, stumbling to the bathroom on the middle of the night, looked in the tank and thought he was dead lol

edit: video didn’t work

Lol stumbling into the bathroom...
dang video. Im nervous because I dosed Iodine today and did a RedSea Iodine test shortly after and the color in the test vial turned clear which doesn't even register on the test. The lighter the color the higher the levels if you're not familiar. I feel like it was an inaccurate test though because it doesnt make sense. I only dosed 1ml of Brightwell Aquatics Iodion. 1ml will raise the Iodine levels by 0.8 in 1 gallon making my 1ml into 18.5 gallons only raise it by 0.04ppm. Just freaks me out to see him behaving like that after those test results thought. My scarlet hermit is fine and so are my snails though and I know Iodine toxicity will affect them as well. Hopefully it's nothing and getting him a new friend tomorrow will make him happy and not be such a weirdo.

 

[BeltedCoyote]

Lol stumbling into the bathroom...
dang video. Im nervous because I dosed Iodine today and did a RedSea Iodine test shortly after and the color in the test vial turned clear which doesn't even register on the test. The lighter the color the higher the levels if you're not familiar. I feel like it was an inaccurate test though because it doesnt make sense. I only dosed 1ml of Brightwell Aquatics Iodion. 1ml will raise the Iodine levels by 0.8 in 1 gallon making my 1ml into 18.5 gallons only raise it by 0.04ppm. Just freaks me out to see him behaving like that after those test results thought. My scarlet hermit is fine and so are my snails though and I know Iodine toxicity will affect them as well. Hopefully it's nothing and getting him a new friend tomorrow will make him happy and not be such a weirdo.

Yeah...being half asleep did not help the shock of seeing one of my two very first SW fish like that...lol. I’m not super familiar with dosing iodine, but if your CUC is okay and the little dude isn’t showing obvious signs of distress he’s probably just being your average weirdo clown. I totally understand the concern though!

 

[Luckyduck]

Great thanks. I do feel a lot better now. Just so strange. He goes from practically lying still in the sand to swimming in place to lying again. He is breathing fine though. My Scarlet hermit is in my Fuge on my Chaeto just chowing away and i see 3 of my snails on the glass moving around doing their sucking. Thanks for the reassurance. Ill keep ya posted tomorrow morning.

 

[Luckyduck]

Clownfish is still doing it this morning. I pretty much freaked last night after I posted with you as all of my snails, nesasiarius and all were milling around my tank which is unusual for nighttime. My Dottyback sleeps in a rock cave at night so I couldn't observe her behavior. I ended up doing a 15% water change at 1:30 this morning lol probably overreacted but at least I was able to sleep with a good conscience knowing if something was wrong I tried. It seems it's just weird behavior and coincidence the snails were moving around. I know Microbacter Clean and Razor Marine by Brightwell Aquatics which I've been dosing for a small diatom outbreak can cause odd behavior. It's just so weird. He barley moves at times. I'm sure he's fine but again it just freaks one out when you see a fish lying still.

 

[proxy001]

how long have you had him?

 

[Luckyduck]

how long have you had him?

About 3 months. He's always acted weird though. Hangs in corners, swims at the top of the tank in place. I've heard clownfish can act even weirder when they don't have many tank mates or an anemone don't know how true that is. I was actually going to go get him a buddy (another clown) today. As I was doing the water change last night he was swimming around just fine though. Perked right up off the bottom and was acting his usual weird self. Just don't like seeing him lye there like that. He's breathing just fine though. I fed last nigh too and he popped right up and ate so I think he's fine, just freaks me out.

 

[proxy001]

I would be carefully giving him a buddy. Clown can be d***. I think your clown may be unsettled because he has nothing to host.

 

[Luckyduck]

I would be carefully giving him a buddy. Clown can be d***. I think your clown may be unsettled because he has nothing to host.

Hmmmm really... I was under the impression they usually take kindly to another clown. He did have an anemone at one point for about 3 weeks but never found it and it later died. He came from a friend of mine who had 5 other clowns in with him. I'll give what you said some thought though for sure. Thanks!

 

[BeltedCoyote]

It seems people have better luck adding a clown smaller than the pre-existing. Food for thought?

 

[Luckyduck]

I'm just afraid to add an anemone as I have a lot of corals all over the place and don't want to move them if the nem decides to park next to them. I was never a big fan of things I cannot control where they go. Like anemones and urchins.

 

[j.falk]

Diatoms should die off on their own once all of the silicates are used up. You shouldn't need to dose anything for them.

If you add another clown, make it a small one...you'll have better chance at pairing them up.

 

[j.falk]

Also, to ease your mind, both of my clowns lie in the bottom corners of the tank several times a day (they sleep there as well). I don't know why and they are as healthy as can be...but they just do it.

 

[Luckyduck]

Also to ease your mind, both of my clowns lie in the bottom corners of the tank several times a day (they sleep there as well). I don't know why and they are as healthy as can be...but they just do it.

Fantastic, great advise and information! Thanks brother!

 

[WiscoFishNut]

+1 to what @j.falk just said. A buddy on the smaller side would be the route I'd recommend. I have a clown in my larger DT that lost its mate and started acting completely wonky. Added a small black snowflake and he turned around and now seems normal(as normal as clowns can get lol).

I love clowns and couldn't have a tank without a pair present, even with the goofy behavior some times lol

 

[BeltedCoyote]

Like I said, clowns are weird. Probably how they got their name TBH

 

[j.falk]

Fantastic, great advise and information! Thanks brother!

It's goofy watching them do it (especially when they lie completely on their side and hold still) and I don't see any real reason for it but mine do the exact same thing and have been doing it on a daily basis for the past 1+ years that I've owned them.

The only time I would ever worry is if they stop eating. Not eating or heavy breathing is a definite bad sign.

 

[JaviNap90]

I'm just afraid to add an anemone as I have a lot of corals all over the place and don't want to move them if the nem decides to park next to them. I was never a big fan of things I cannot control where they go. Like anemones and urchins.

Hey bud. I would consider adding another clown of the same species. they really need a partner so they can go and explore together and also interact with. i have two Black Snowflake that was lucky enough to get a pair that was already bonded for like 90 bucks. These two really love each other and never separate in the tank.love those two and because of them i decided to have QT tank. I have a red bubble-tip anemone in tank that hasn't moved and i haven't seen them interact with it . Hopefully they get acquainted later on lol. Bottom line, get him a partner a bit smaller but not too small because at the beginning they will fight to figure out who's the boss. they will figure out the sex themselves later on.

 

[Luckyduck]

+1 to what @j.falk just said. A buddy on the smaller side would be the route I'd recommend. I have a clown in my larger DT that lost its mate and started acting completely wonky. Added a small black snowflake and he turned around and now seems normal(as normal as clowns can get lol).

I love clowns and couldn't have a tank without a pair present, even with the goofy behavior some times lol

Lol that's great to hear. That's exactly what I was thinking. One of my local PetCo's is in a high end neighborhood and has a really surprisingly nice saltwater section. They always have a bunch of Clowns and they're very fairly priced. I'm sure I can find a smaller one today. I've always kept Clowns too, had many reef tanks over the years I feel their a staple in a reef aquarium.