Baby clownfish huddled in top corner of aquarium??

cryptodendrum

New member
I am new to the world of raising my own aqua-cultured clownfish, so I am hoping someone has seen this before and can enlighten me or point me to some documentation on this topic.

I have managed to retain 25-30 survivors from both the second and third clownfish spawning events.

Both generations appear to be happily co-existing in a single 27-liter aquarium. But by the time the 4 remaining survivors from second generation began going through metamorphosis, we noticed the seemed to be huddled in the top front corner of the tank.

My wife and I guessed/theorized that maybe they were "meniscus surfing", in an attempt to get a view on the top of the water. We continued to watch, photograph, and even video the behavior - which seem unchanged after we deposited about 100 larvae from the 3rd generation in the same tank.

However, now that the remaining 3rd generation is starting to enter metamorphosis, we have noticed that more and more, they are beginning to huddle in the corner with the second generation, so closely that it is becoming hard to tell the two generations apart.

It was suggested today that they looked like they were queuing for concert tickets to go on sale. :D

Otherwise, They appear fat and happy. Occasionally, a few will stray around the tank, but always eventually return. A few others do seem the exception and swim around the tank quite happily on their own, appearing not at all interested in what is going on in the corner.

Water conditions are normal - furthermore, an autodoser is used to perform water changes daily.

Anyone ever seen anything like this before?

I will try to post some pictures & links shortly.
 
Pictures

Pictures

So here's a full view photo of the tank. If you look closely, you'll see some single clownfish babies also swimming in the middle of the water column. However, on the top front left, you can see the "gathering" that continues regardless of feeding or lighting conditions. Adjusting the air-bubbler to increase and decrease the water column circulation, has little impact either.

105751clownfish-huddle.jpg
 
clownsfish fry huddle in mass in the absence of a nem some think they were schooling fish that were atracted to the anem because it looks like a wiggling mass of fish they are just attracted to eachother
 
When the babies are happy and well fed they will huddle like that. Ease up on the feeding and you will see them racing around the tank. But I wouldn't worry about it unless your getting deaths every so often. Then I would think your overfeeding BBS.
 
Thanks for the feedback!

Thanks for the feedback!

To everyone who replied: Thanks for the feedback. The babies continue to swarm around in the corner, but seem overall rather happy.

I now wonder if it would benefit the babies by putting one or two Florida mushroom corals in the growout tank with them? Anyone have any thoughts on letting babies / larvae host in a growout tank?

I am considering this, because the parents currently host around a very large patch of Florida Ricordia Mushrooms in the main display tank, and lay their egg's just underneath the same patch.


Mrseptember15: You'll have to search the forum database for more information on that, but from what I've read (read: lightly skimmed the subject of) elsewhere in this same forum, I'm under the impression that won't have much, if any bearing on the symbiotic relationship between the two.

cheers :)
 
Have you ever known mushrooms to eat such things?

I ask, because mine seem content just feeding on the light - have never really witnessed any of my mushrooms "eating" anything the size of a clownfish fry.

I'd be very interested if that was known behavior for mushrooms.

Cheers :D
 
i am no expert but i read that plastic anemones work well for the fry but should not be in coral until they are more hardy?
 
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