Killer clown?

[frasey]

Hi all, could you please help me. I got Given a clown fish which is about a year old to put in my new tank about 2 months ago, three weeks ago I put in a green Chromis and they’re best pals. Saturday I put in a Banghai Cardinal and everyone seems happy, I came down this morning (Monday) and I’ve only a clown left. Would my clown of eaten the others as he was first in? Parameters look good,
salinity 1.025
temp. 26.8
Nitrite. 0
Nitrate. 2
P.h. 8
Calc. 440
amon. 0.2

thanks

 

[i cant think]

Hi all, could you please help me. I got Given a clown fish which is about a year old to put in my new tank about 2 months ago, three weeks ago I put in a green Chromis and they’re best pals. Saturday I put in a Banghai Cardinal and everyone seems happy, I came down this morning (Monday) and I’ve only a clown left. Would my clown of eaten the others as he was first in? Parameters look good,
salinity 1.025
temp. 26.8
Nitrite. 0
Nitrate. 2
P.h. 8
Calc. 440
amon. 0.2

thanks

What size tank?

 

[IKD]

Hi all, could you please help me. I got Given a clown fish which is about a year old to put in my new tank about 2 months ago, three weeks ago I put in a green Chromis and they’re best pals. Saturday I put in a Banghai Cardinal and everyone seems happy, I came down this morning (Monday) and I’ve only a clown left. Would my clown of eaten the others as he was first in? Parameters look good,
salinity 1.025
temp. 26.8
Nitrite. 0
Nitrate. 2
P.h. 8
Calc. 440
amon. 0.2

thanks

Do you see any dead bodies or did the other two just disappear? If you see the bodies, can you tell if they were attacked (torn fins, BigE makes, etc). Need to determine if this was physical (aggression) or biological (ich, velvet, etc)

 

[Tchung23]

You need to see the bodies. Clown may beat up fish but not sure it would eat 2 fish completly

 

[frasey]

Do you see any dead bodies or did the other two just disappear? If you see the bodies, can you tell if they were attacked (torn fins, BigE makes, etc). Need to determine if this was physical (aggression) or biological (ich, velvet, etc)

we found a few fins from the Cardinal but nothing of the chromis

 

[IKD]

we found a few fins from the Cardinal but nothing of the chromis

Seems odd for a clownfish to eat a fish. What kind of clown do you have specifically?

 

[blaxsun]

A weekend is plenty of time for the cleaning crew to "clean house.

 

[frasey]

Seems odd for a clownfish to eat a fish. What kind of clown do you have specifically?

I’m not sure, it’s black and white with an orange head

 

[frasey]

Hi guys,
thanks for the replies, I’m New to this hobby so I’m not sure which clown I have, I know it’s a female, black with white stripes and an orange head. I’ve got a snail and a peppermint shrimp as clean up crew but unsure what else to get to clean up the carnage?

 

[frasey]

Do you see any dead bodies or did the other two just disappear? If you see the bodies, can you tell if they were attacked (torn fins, BigE makes, etc). Need to determine if this was physical (aggression) or biological (ich, velvet, etc)

I’m afraid all we found after was a few cardinal fins.

 

[IKD]

Hi guys,
thanks for the replies, I’m New to this hobby so I’m not sure which clown I have, I know it’s a female, black with white stripes and an orange head. I’ve got a snail and a peppermint shrimp as clean up crew but unsure what else to get to clean up the carnage?

Posting a Picture would be great. How is the clown doing? What size tank is it?

 

[Sharkbait19]

Sounds like a mocha or a Darwin, both just breeds of occy but very nasty. Could have bullied them till they jumped (unlikely based on finding fins), or the other two were sick and the inverts cleaned up. Clowns can kill but not eat a victim near their size. Biggest thing mine has eaten is an amphipod.

 

[N.Sreefer]

Did you start with LR or dry? Could be a mantis or a gorilla crab.

 

[frasey]

Did you start with LR or dry? Could be a mantis or a gorilla crab.

I started with dry rock and the Red Sea coral kit to get things going

 

[hhaase]

I know a lot of people say Chromis are a hardy fish, but i've found the exact opposite to be true. There's a lot of anecdotal evidence on R2R from far more experienced reefers that supports my opinion. They'll be eating fine, no signs of stress, illness, or injury. Then suddenly POOF, dead and gone.

In my case I had a percula clown and two cardinals co-existing just fine for months. I added in some chromis, and one of the cardinals was gone almost immediately. Then the chromis all died off over the next two weeks. None of my other livestock was affected at all. The 2nd cardinal and the clown are still healthy and happy in my tank to this day.

 

[MaxTremors]

Is it from outer space?

 

[Sharkbait19]

I know a lot of people say Chromis are a hardy fish, but i've found the exact opposite to be true. There's a lot of anecdotal evidence on R2R from far more experienced reefers that supports my opinion. They'll be eating fine, no signs of stress, illness, or injury. Then suddenly POOF, dead and gone.

In my case I had a percula clown and two cardinals co-existing just fine for months. I added in some chromis, and one of the cardinals was gone almost immediately. Then the chromis all died off over the next two weeks. None of my other livestock was affected at all. The 2nd cardinal and the clown are still healthy and happy in my tank to this day.

Chromis are uronema magnets it seems, could be related.

 

[Zoa_Fanatic]

I know a lot of people say Chromis are a hardy fish, but i've found the exact opposite to be true. There's a lot of anecdotal evidence on R2R from far more experienced reefers that supports my opinion. They'll be eating fine, no signs of stress, illness, or injury. Then suddenly POOF, dead and gone.

In my case I had a percula clown and two cardinals co-existing just fine for months. I added in some chromis, and one of the cardinals was gone almost immediately. Then the chromis all died off over the next two weeks. None of my other livestock was affected at all. The 2nd cardinal and the clown are still healthy and happy in my tank to this day.

Chromis play Highlander. There can be only one. For some reason when my dad had them they would fight to the death it put in in even numbers.

 

[jfoahs04]

OP, I'm not sure what is consuming your fish, but I think it's very unlikely that your clown is both killing and eating your fish. A clown can be both aggressive (chasing/attacking tankmates) and opportunistic (they'll eat most anything), but they're not hunters.

That said, the clown could absolutely be aggressive to the point of nipping and otherwise injuring other fish. Especially in a small tank (you've never specified how big the tank is) or a tank with minimal rockwork/hiding places as they can be very territorial. The combination of stress and injury could lead to the other fish dying. But I think you would have seen some of this behavior. Did you ever see your clown chasing or attacking the other fish? Did you ever notice the fins were nipped, scars or marks on the other fish?

If you haven't noticed any of this behavior, it's most likely that your fish died from other causes and were consumed by cleanup crew (snails, hermits, other hitchikers, etc.). I don't know what coral you have, but some can make surprisingly quick work of a dead fish (many LPS will eat a dead/near-dead fish that is within reach of their sweepers). In my opinion, it's far more likely that disease took them down and the clean up crew did their jobs.

 

[Sharkbait19]

Chromis play Highlander. There can be only one. For some reason when my dad had them they would fight to the death it put in in even numbers.

If you know about exodon tetras, they are the same way. Either a massive shoal or just one, or they will make it just one.