My clown died

FortyFour44 · Feb 20, 2021

My clownfish died after at least 9 years of me buying it from a LFS. It was mated/spawning with a female that is probably 12, in my 110g. I’m fairly certain they are ocillarus. It was the females 2nd mate.

I’m not sure if I will be moving forward with a single clown or trying to pair again (ideal choice).
If I move forward with a single clown, should I be worried about additional aggression/territorial behavior? When mated, they stayed fairly close to their host, and I’ve noticed her more “out and about” now.

Thanks for any advice here.

dedragon · Feb 20, 2021

Im very sorry, it is awful to lose a pet you have had for so long. If its been 9 years and just lost the male, I wouldnt be too worried about adding another. I would go for a small juvenile ocellaris (designer or whatever) from a trustworthy LFS and introduce it in an acclimation box at first and wait for the female to accept it

FortyFour44 · Feb 20, 2021

dedragon said:
Im very sorry, it is awful to lose a pet you have had for so long. If its been 9 years and just lost the male, I wouldnt be too worried about adding another. I would go for a small juvenile ocellaris (designer or whatever) from a trustworthy LFS and introduce it in an acclimation box at first and wait for the female to accept it

Thank you. Yea never a fun surprise.

The female is between large and huge. Should I be concerned about the juvenile being too small?

dedragon · Feb 20, 2021

I would be more worried getting a larger one that turns out to be female. Kinda hard to know if it is already male unless you separate another pair. Oc clowns are usually more accepting of mates just definitely introduce it with an acclimation box or have one ready if the fighting gets intense. I just use a critter keep from petco and a magnet

dedragon · Feb 20, 2021

now you have to figure out if you want a regular one or those newfangled designer ones. When my percula pair lost a male to a jump, i replaced it with a mocha storm

DeniseAndy · Feb 20, 2021

Just make sure it is juvenile. Under an inch is sure sign.

She should be good with a little guy. Probably out looking for a mate now.

zalick · Feb 20, 2021

FortyFour44 said:
My clownfish died after at least 9 years of me buying it from a LFS. It was mated/spawning with a female that is probably 12, in my 110g. I’m fairly certain they are ocillarus. It was the females 2nd mate.

I’m not sure if I will be moving forward with a single clown or trying to pair again (ideal choice).
If I move forward with a single clown, should I be worried about additional aggression/territorial behavior? When mated, they stayed fairly close to their host, and I’ve noticed her more “out and about” now.

Thanks for any advice here.

Sorry for your loss. I had a loss in very similar fashion and ages but it was my female.

The male, now female, acted pretty depressed for awhile. Now she just sticks to her corner. It's been about 2 years.

FortyFour44 · Feb 21, 2021

dedragon said:
now you have to figure out if you want a regular one or those newfangled designer ones. When my percula pair lost a male to a jump, i replaced it with a mocha storm

Would the female be less likely to pair if I got a black or designer clown?

dedragon · Feb 21, 2021

She may be a little more reluctant but that is what the acclimation box helps with. First introduce the male inside the box and the male will know where to go for safety. After a day I would introduce the male to the tank if they are doing the shaky dance. If she is super aggressive the male ime usually goes straight for the acclimation box and its easy to put it back in for another day or two. After a few attempts (sometimes just one) they will most likely pair up, they're not as choosy as those devilish maroons

FortyFour44 · Mar 31, 2021

I received my juvenile clown in the mail right now and it is tiny in comparison to my female. I seriously think my female might be able to fit it in her mouth. How do I go about this?

@DeniseAndy @dedragon

FortyFour44 · Mar 31, 2021

vetteguy53081 · Mar 31, 2021

Try and get tank raised opposed to wild as tank raised rarely if ever get bacteria and brooklynella disease.

FortyFour44 · Mar 31, 2021

@vetteguy53081 I got this one pre-quarantined from Quarantined Fish and it is tank raised.

Azedenkae · Mar 31, 2021

FortyFour44 said:

Holy crap that is small.

Zoa_Fanatic · Mar 31, 2021

Azedenkae said:
Holy crap that is small.

I think his female is just massive

DeniseAndy · Mar 31, 2021

So cute. Keep in the box for a few days and see if she shows any issues. May not happen until you release him though.
Being so small, she should actually accept him with no issues.

DeniseAndy · Mar 31, 2021

Is that a stereonepthya in the photo?

FortyFour44 · Mar 31, 2021

DeniseAndy said:
So cute. Keep in the box for a few days and see if she shows any issues. May not happen until you release him though.
Being so small, she should actually accept him with no issues.

This is what I’m shooting for. Going to feel this out and always have my QT if I decide to fatten it up over a month. It’s even smaller than it looks in the picture if that’s even possible. Not what I was expecting and also not worth fussing about. Otherwise happy customer.

FortyFour44 · Mar 31, 2021

DeniseAndy said:
Is that a stereonepthya in the photo?

I think you might be referring to my ultra super rare kenya tree

FortyFour44 · Apr 6, 2021

So, the baby clown escaped the acrylic fish trap I had been using as an acclimation box after a few days (it fit through one of the feeding holes designed to allow pellets to fall through).
All is good so far. It’s living in some frogspawn that is adjacent to the conch that hosts my female. There is some interaction and posturing but nothing alarmingI was worried my flame hawk might swallow it whole but the baby clown is good at maneuvering in the frogspawn for protection.

The added dynamic has become fun to observe. All is good I think.