Salt Wars II. Attack of the Clowns

[snobanker]

Well I got two black misbarred OC clowns that I added to my tank. I already had two regular OC's and they all seemed to get along fine, until today. Today the existing clowns decided to relentlessly attack the new black ones. Not sure what happened. Anyway while I was at work my wife saw the war going on and was trying to catch the new clowns to put them back in a QT tank. I came home and found it easier to catch the old ones and put them in my fuge for now.

I'm assuming there was some kind of territory war, so I was wondering if anyone thought leaving the old clowns out of the main tank for awhile would be better than vice versa. I had really been happy with how well they got along at first then all of a sudden wow.

Any advice on what I should do?

 

[btuck]

you could try changing the aquascaping. Perhaps that would trick the old pair into thinking they are in a new home.

 

[Rock-N-Ruin]

wow! my maroon's won't take another clown in a 6ft. tank.. you should have stayed home with popcorn to watch the fight. how big is your tank? how long have the clowns been in it??

 

[NaH2O]

Stan - Love the title of this thread!

I don't remember how large your tank is? It might be a choice of which clowns you like better.

 

[spongebob lover]

so did Luke Skywalker win or Darth Fader :lol: ?
Well so far from what i know from Elmo is that you're not suppose to have to types of clowns in there, but may be taking the old ones and putting the new ones could work the same with the aquascaping.
If i was you, i'd keep the black ones and give away the OC's.... (i have space) .... well i hope you find a way so they can stay all together but i think it's gonna be hard.
may the force be with you :lol:

 

[btuck]

Oh so you have space do you Miss spongebob lover....perhaps you've been spending time with the butler again :shock: :lol:

 

[spongebob lover]

Oh so you have space do you Miss spongebob lover....perhaps you've been spending time with the butler again

LOL !!! no dood my only 3 fishes aren't going anywhere with the butler

 

[snobanker]

well sadly one of the clowns lost his battle with the dark side. I guess he was too weak from the smack down he went through.

I'm bummed cause I haven't lost a fish in over two years.

The tank is 55 G's. Maybe I was pushing it with 4 clowns in there. They are all OC's but the two new ones were black so maybe that was different enough that they don't get along. Right now the two original clowns are in my fuge. They hosted in a metallic green brain in the main tank. I just got a RBTA from Susie that I was hoping the new clown(s) would host in. So far it is being ignored by all.

Maybe I'll move the brain and put the others back in and see what happens. Hmmmm...:doubt:

 

[spongebob lover]

ohh partner !!!
i'm sorry to hear about your clown.

 

[NaH2O]

Stan - I don't think in a tank that size it would be wise to have more than two clowns, regardless of the species. I'm pretty sure the female and male will assert their dominance as the clownfish rulers of the tank, and if they don't harm the third clown, they will certainly stress it, IMO. Maybe put a link to this thread in the Clownfish Workshop, and see what elmo18 thinks...

 

[snobanker]

Stan - I don't think in a tank that size it would be wise to have more than two clowns, regardless of the species. I'm pretty sure the female and male will assert their dominance as the clownfish rulers of the tank, and if they don't harm the third clown, they will certainly stress it, IMO. Maybe put a link to this thread in the Clownfish Workshop, and see what elmo18 thinks...

Good idea Nikki...I thought I remembered elmo18 one time telling me it would be OK, but maybe I misunderstood or he didn't have full info.

 

[Krish]

Sorry to hear about your loss Stan...Clowns are like pitbulls when they get ready. I hope you don't suffer anymore losses

 

[Elmo18]

First of all, I am sorry for one of your black ocellaris to have perished Stan. The issue of keeping/or the ability of having more than one species of clownfish in a single tank has not been discussed in the workshop. It is on the list for Topic 7--part of 'creating the right environment'. What has come up in the workshop was whether or not 3 or more juvenile clowns of the same species would coexist and whether one or two will remain juveniles.

Ok, so what went wrong? Tank size is one factor. In a tank of 55 gallons, you can definitely have more than 2 clownfishes, however, I do not recommend them being different species. This is due to territorial reasons. Lets approach this a little differently. Suppose you have a lone ocellaris clownfish (not a pair, like in your situation). In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with adding a pair (a juvenile pair, in this case) of black ocellaris. Will there be chasing? Lunging? Quite possibly, or maybe not. In general, lone clownfishes will tend to behave better than a bonded pair. However, as hobbyists, I think it is our responsibility to try our best to not let these things happen. Ok, so what could you have done differently. IMO, I don't see anything wrong with experimenting. However, suppose we go back to the point where you added the two black ocellaris. If they are acting like you said they are, you would have noticed it rather quickly. At that moment, the new black ocellaris should or maybe be introduced slowly via a specimen container, or better yet, placed into a new tank altogether.

This topic causes much concern because individual fishes differ in behavior. My pair of ocellaris may be tamer or behave differently than your current pair. However, in your situation, I would say if you wanted the black ocellaris, then possibly set up a new tank for them, or possibly think about swapping the pair with the ocellaris pair :|

What plans do you have for the lone black ocellaris?

Best,
Ilham

 

[snobanker]

Thanks Ilham,

They all semed to get along rather well for a day or so. No chasing or lunging. Then all of a sudden they started the war. Right now my pair of OC's are in my refugium and the lone black OC is in the main tank. I really don't want to experiment either.

What if I just left them the way they are until my 180 is set to go? Could I add them all in then. And since the black OC is by himself now, what if I got 1 more to add in with him now? I am assuming that would be ok?

 

[Elmo18]

And since the black OC is by himself now, what if I got 1 more to add in with him now? I am assuming that would be ok?

Correct Stan. I would follow the pairing guidelines in the workshop. Basically, get a smaller fish :O)

Best,
Ilham

 

[snobanker]

Thanks, Ilham...I'm gonna dig in to that clown forum a little more.