Clowns !! Confused!?

[Zallman125]

Okay I know I'm probably gonna get lectured on this but I mixed clown species in my tank today bec I wanted some diff clowns..reason I did this bec my fish dealer has like 6 diff clown species in her tank and there all happy so I thought id give it a whirl! So I originally had 2 oscerallis clowns they've been together for awhile now they've been transfered from over 4 aquariums but now their in a 72 bow with 80lbs of live rock! ones 2 inches female I'm pretty sure and the other is an inch male. So today I added a Maroon 2 inches and a mocha clown a tad short of an inch when I threw them in the tank my clowns did not really like the mocha and they did not seem to care for the maroon. But after a few mins they started picking on my mocha harassing. But then! All 4 clowns were literally swimming together pretty much cuddling like they were family...then mins later they started harassing again then they started picking on the maroon...as time went by they would swim by one another for a lil like buddies then pick and harras them both again..then they would cuddle and swim again!? It's kinda weird I'm not sure what's going on lol one second they love each other the next they hate them..so my fish dealer said turn the lights off and if it doesn't get any better I can pick one of the 2 and bring them back for new fish..I would like to keep all 4 though! Please help and ideas! Don't bash on me either! I've made the impossible possible before in reef tanks !

 

[cpayne015]

putting two established clowns with two new clowns is not good. only a 70 gal aquarium is very tough to make 4 clowns mix when they are not the same kind and batch. I would get the two out and take back to be safe

 

[Tahoe61]

The trick to keep multiple clowns in a tank is

1. If you are going to keep two adult females you need a lot bigger tank than 70 gallons.
2. Try to acquire clowns that are sexually immature so one becomes the dominate female, one a dominate male and all others remain sexually immature.

Honestly your lady at the fish store should have shared the basic foundations of clown fish hierarchy before selling or encouraging someone else to attempt it. Can it be done yes, should people attempt it, sure if the tank is large enough and they are aware of basic clown fish husbandry such as sex determination. Push the envelop all you want, but try not to do so at the expense of your charges please.

 

[davocean]

Boy, when that maroon decides he's had enough he is going to go to town on the others.

 

[Kware0112]

Lol, ^. That's what I was thinking! You have a type of fish that likes to be in pairs of their own kind. Add a 3rd and they'll team up on it. They don't accept a third wheel. Then on top of that, u put in one of the most aggressive types of clowns that usually won't even get along with another type of clown other than it's own species. I don't think you will be able to pull it off. Sorry

 

[sooley19]

I have 8 clownfishes in my tank and I have a few different types and I'm not gonna lie my black and white one is the boss of the tank and it's a 75 gallon

 

[joelpeavy]

Let me make sure I understand...all 4 clowns are new to this tank right? If that's the case I wouldn't expect all the squabbling unless it was the maroon whipping the other's arses. One trick I saw done with a 65G once, was to put a egg crate divider in the middle, place anenomes on either side of the reef and let the clowns make their territory accordingly. I think it took about a month before the divider could be removed and the clowns didn't go after each other in pairs. Still not a good move by your LFS if they knew your tank size and other inhabitants.

 

[joelpeavy]

Might move the maroon and mocha into your fuge until they can get a little growth on them.

 

[CyberGoby]

should of done all at the same time

 

[davocean]

Wow, a lot of unsound advice given here.
When a pair of clowns have paired off and mature even a little bit, they are going to be aggressive to the others, most likely kill them.
You can only have one pair per tank, period.
Anything that appears like success is only temporary.
The ONLY way a harem is pulled off is when you have a pair, and babies from that pair from the same clutch that have been badgered into not sexing.
You can see this info on the BRS video, or in Moberts thread, 27 clowns