2 pairs of different breeds of clownfish

[Justanothereef]

This is my first post on here so hang on tight! I recently (5 months ago) picked up a 240 gallon tank which I transferred my 12yr old mated pair of perc clowns into (they were previously in a 55 gal). This last Tuesday I received a pair of Wyoming white clownfish thru swf.com and acclimated them via drip for 4 hrs (probably not necessary but I was also adding a six line wrasse and figured I'd give all the same treatment). I haven't seen one of the clownfish eat yet (2 days) and the other is doing great...other than the constant harassment from my mated pair. It was bad enough after feeding tonight that I shut off the lights on the tank to try and save the little guy(s). The clownfish that hasn't eaten yet doesn't get picked on as much cause I think he has been beat enough that he submitted. So the question, isn't a 240 gallon tank big enough to keep 2 of almost any reef fish? The tank has well over 300 Lbs of rock in it so there are plenty of places for either pair to go but...just not enough? The issue is compounded for me cause I've been so patient in getting these new fish and was so damn excited and now I think I may have wasted $69 a piece on these little guys. I'm debating on which pair I should throw down in my 20gallon section of refugium (in my sump)...basically I'm so ****ed I'm humanizing these fish and am ready to punish my mated pair with hopes it'll somehow change the behavior. That was a lot longer than expected..hopefully someone has some advice!!! Thanks in advance!

 

[Desert Sea]

Anything more than two clowns in a tank will eventually end up with you having two clowns in a tank. You might want to return them if you can or find them a new home.

 

[thegrun]

I've seen two pair work in a tank as small as a 180 when they are all introduced at the same time, but usually within a year or two one pair will kill off the other set of clowns. When you have an established pair even an 8' tank is often not big enough to accommodate adding a second pair.

 

[ca1ore]

I've kept as many as a dozen juvie clowns in a 180, but as soon as they matured and especially with the introduction of an acceptable host anemone the fur began to fly ..... Well, scales in this case I suppose.

 

[Sk8r]

The only thing that might work is to literally build a rock wall dividing the tank, permeable, but defining territory. I doubt it will work with two breeding pairs, but 'spires' and other rock forms do help in a damsel tank, defining the 'chase limit' of one party versus another. Each picks out a rock and defends it. In this case, making an out-of-sight=out-of-mind limit might defuse the fighting, but I frankly doubt it. A mated pair of any sort of damsels is beyond pushy.

 

[davocean]

Normally as they mature one pair will claim territory and become aggressive to all others, the only groupings that seem to work long term are clowns all from the same clutch, and even that may come w/ some pecking off over time.

 

[Uncle99]

Yup, that will not work. Watch the fish that gets the stress....if he gets white spot, remove.
I agree with you though, you'd figure with 240 there would be room for everyone....dam those damels