Concerned about my clownfish

[MurphyTheClownfish]

So today I got home and one of my 2 black clowns was acting quite strange. Lying on her side, curling up, not going after food etc. I freaked out and immediately began monitoring her, to which she moved around, but she wont eat, or even attempt to. I have had them for a while and had no issues, she seems to be getting checked on quite a bit by the male clown. Parameters are totally unchanhed and normal, the male clown is all good. Anyone got any Ideas? I'll attach some pics of what shes doing. She also has elevated breathing. I am honestly lost here so all input is welcome. Thank you

 

[fishguy242]

hi how old is she, how long have you had ?

 

[MurphyTheClownfish]

hi how old is she, how long have you had ?

I dont know how old, but I've had them both for like 5 months. They are a pair, but I was just wondering if potentially they unpaired and now the male is picking on her?The male seems to be swimming in circle close to her and nipping at her rear side. Shes now kind of hanging out at the top of the rockeork, swimming, but only in a small area. Could they maybe be mating? No clue if these are the right ideas but I have no clue so I'm just throwing out ideas

 

[fishguy242]

any recent additions,all other fish ok ? i'm going blind here ,freshwater temperate dip,
but wait ,answer the questions,before help arrives. @Jay Hemdal @vetteguy53081

 

[fishguy242]

I dont know how old, but I've had them both for like 5 months. They are a pair, but I was just wondering if potentially they unpaired and now the male is picking on her?The male seems to be swimming in circle close to her and nipping at her rear side. Shes now kind of hanging out at the top of the rockeork, swimming, but only in a small area. Could they maybe be mating? No clue if these are the right ideas but I have no clue so I'm just throwing out ideas

sounds like poss flukes? ..she is weakened male is picking on?
recent new additions?
other fish in system?
separate ,asap do you have a container /acclimation box? #reefsqaud

 

[MurphyTheClownfish]

any recent additions,all other fish ok ? i'm going blind here ,freshwater temperate dip,
but wait ,answer the questions,before help arrives. @Jay Hemdal @vetteguy53081

they're currently the only fish, the clean up crew has been stable for longer than theyve been here, and no recent additions of anything. I've never tried freshwater dips, do you have any info on that? I'm going to research it a bit before I just go into in blind

Edit; I do not have an acclimtion box but I could throw smth together

 

[MurphyTheClownfish]

Update:

They have both calmed down, the male isn't picking anymore, and they are both kind of twitching at each other. The female hasn't left her position, but she's still active. Is this a mating thing?

 

[fishguy242]

quite possible,but the heavy breathing is what concerns me ,can you post a short video of her ,for the experts.

 

[MurphyTheClownfish]

She is the larger one, and the one obviously that I focused on after the male left. She's not laying down anymore

 

[fishguy242]

almost 100% mating or making transition rt now... almost...
turn off lights ,observe for a lil while ,update ,or reply to experts when they arrive
have a container ready to separate if aggression continues.

 

[Grumblez]

Any new corals added recently? Unlikely but they can technically have a fish disease on them. The rapid breathing and not eating is definitely bad, I would research a freshwater dip and look for flukes or something to come off.

How To - Freshwater Dip

Freshwater Dip (updated 7-30-2023) What It Treats: Provides temporary relief of some parasites - Marine Velvet Disease, Brooklynella hostilis, Uronema marinum seem most susceptible to the osmotic shock. A FW dip can also be used to dislodge certain crustaceans and worms, such as Parasitic...

humble.fish

 

[MurphyTheClownfish]

sounds like poss flukes? ..she is weakened male is picking on?
recent new additions?
other fish in system?
separate ,asap do you have a container /acclimation box? #reefsqaud

almost 100% mating or making transition rt now... almost...
turn off lights ,observe for a lil while ,update ,or reply to experts when they arrive
have a container ready to separate if aggression continues.

Thank you for the help! I'll keep this thread updated on what happens

 

[MurphyTheClownfish]

Any new corals added recently? Unlikely but they can technically have a fish disease on them. The rapid breathing and not eating is definitely bad, I would research a freshwater dip and look for flukes or something to come off.

How To - Freshwater Dip

Freshwater Dip (updated 7-30-2023) What It Treats: Provides temporary relief of some parasites - Marine Velvet Disease, Brooklynella hostilis, Uronema marinum seem most susceptible to the osmotic shock. A FW dip can also be used to dislodge certain crustaceans and worms, such as Parasitic...

humble.fish

No new corals, I've left it alone for a little. I'll look into freshwater dips asap

 

[fishguy242]

hope your on west coast...could get ugly quickly,i did see lip locking.
nipping fins not so bad ,fin grabbing,lip locking bad news.

 

[MurphyTheClownfish]

Update:

I took the male out for 30 minutes and the femals seemed to calm down, I let him back into the tank and he seemed to be getting along with her but I just checked and they're back at the twitching, however theres little to no biting and fighting now. Also noticed they are both trying to host my green hairy mushroom which is FAR too small for even one to host. Could this be a cause of dispute between them?

Also apologies for the large amount of posts, I'm just trying to figure out what I'm dealing with. Also looked into freshwater dipping, but I dont think its an infection, and I'm fairly certain at this point its stress related to the other clown

 

[fishguy242]

i'm thinking same,not the mush,but the sexing,i would put male in acclimation box,container with holes for good water flow through .in same tank for the night ,give her a break ,observe tomorrow .

 

[Gup]

I dont know how old, but I've had them both for like 5 months. They are a pair, but I was just wondering if potentially they unpaired and now the male is picking on her?The male seems to be swimming in circle close to her and nipping at her rear side. Shes now kind of hanging out at the top of the rockeork, swimming, but only in a small area. Could they maybe be mating? No clue if these are the right ideas but I have no clue so I'm just throwing out ideas

I think that is a strong possibility, that they are mimicking a mating ritual. I have 2 Mocha Storm Clowns that I purchased very, very small. I have had them for eight months and they cannot be much more than nine months old. The one grew just a bit larger than the other and it’s clear to me which one is female and which one is male. Do you notice the male curling his body in front of her? And yes, nipping seems to be a part of the ritual because I see the same. I did some reading and it seems as though they are following mating rituals which I read. The female that’s totally normal. The mail, does everything but fin stands in front of her. It’s the first time I’ve seen something like this and I found it quite romantic.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Update:

I took the male out for 30 minutes and the femals seemed to calm down, I let him back into the tank and he seemed to be getting along with her but I just checked and they're back at the twitching, however theres little to no biting and fighting now. Also noticed they are both trying to host my green hairy mushroom which is FAR too small for even one to host. Could this be a cause of dispute between them?

Also apologies for the large amount of posts, I'm just trying to figure out what I'm dealing with. Also looked into freshwater dipping, but I dont think its an infection, and I'm fairly certain at this point its stress related to the other clown

Generally, for clown mating behavior, you'll see substrate cleaning and shimmying. This is either pair bonding breaking down, or it broke down and is now getting reestablished. Her rapid breathing in the absence of the male's rapid breathing is odd. Tends to take me away from a parasite issue (where you would think both fish would have been infected at the same time).

Jay

 

[MurphyTheClownfish]

Update:

So this morning I woke up a bit early to check on them, male had been in an acclimtion box for 4 hours, so I let him out. I checked on them before I left for school and the male wasn't bothering the female, she was however hovering near vertical next to the rock, kind of laying on it. Didnt get a picture but her head was faced towards the sand. She did swim around when the male came by, and when I took my flashlight to the tank to see in, she responded and moved around like she'd been woken up. Is the laying on the rock a sleeping behavior? Never seen it before so it's a tad concerning but I kind of assumed it wasn't anything major. Didn't feed this morning, so no clue if shes eating again, hopefully when I get home it's all resolved and my work is done. But I think we all know that probably wont be the case lol.

Thanks to everyone for the help