anemone out more without clown

[Mavrk]

I lost my female ocellaris last week. She slept in my RBTA at night. The anemone seems to be out a lot more now that she is gone. I was thinking that it might have to do with the BTA not being a natural host to A. ocellaris. Or it could just be that it is not getting as irritated. The anemone is only a little bigger than the clown, so it might be the latter. I was just wondering peoples thoughts on this.

I did pull the male (who only hung out near by) and put him in my frag tank. I figure I will get a couple allardi clowns for the anemones since that is a natural pairing. But maybe I will wait a little bit since the anemone seems to be out more for now.

 

[ssgtgonzo]

Sorry for your loss. I have a pair of Darwin black occys that host in btas no problem, but the btas are large, so you may have something with the size of the nem.

 

[LesMartin]

Clowns can be a little rough with their hosts so a rough guide would be to have an anemone at least 3x the size of any clowns. Your anemone is probably breathing a sigh of relief.......

 

[velvetelvis]

If you still want natural symbionts for your BTA (I did too), look into getting a couple of aquacultured juveniles. Sustainable Aquatics breeds them; I've always gotten good fish from them. The clowns will be much smaller and maybe less stressful for your nem.

I agree that it wouldn't be a bad idea to let the anemone rest a spell before adding clowns again.

 

[Mavrk]

Thanks all. My female was with me for 5 years and lost her mate a few months back. I replaced the male and she had paired up with the newcomer. Since I got the 2 original clowns together, I think it was just an age thing (although I expected another 5 from them).

She only slept in the anemone at night, and was gentle enough compared to a lot of clowns I see. So if I added one that is in there all day the anemone might not be so happy. I also have a GBTA that has never been a host and is smaller than the rose. So I think I will let the anemones grow more before adding any clowns.

The anemone even seems to be out at night now even with the lights off.

 

[ssgtgonzo]

Not gonna lie, thats kind of a sad story. If i anthromorphize your nem, it seems like it's missing your clown's company!

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