Can I keep two pairs of clownfish in a 40 gallon breeder??

[izzy123]

Hello,

So, I got my tank set up(40G breeder with a 25G sump), cycled and I have a CUC in there and two clowns (occelaris), the "regular" kind

But I was wondering if I could keep another pair of black and white clowns in there too, or is that asking for trouble?

Thanks

Ivan

 

[shifty51008]

t pairs in any tank IMO unless over 300gal. is asking for trouble. even in a 300 is iffy

 

[izzy123]

t pairs in any tank IMO unless over 300gal. is asking for trouble. even in a 300 is iffy

Wow, I sure hope you ment liters instead of gallons.......that's swimming pool size you're talking about.........

I guess two pairs of clowns are for the lucky few...... not me.....

Thanks

 

[shifty51008]

no i really ment gallons. clowns become very territoral especally when they begin to breed

 

[GhostCon1]

You do need a fairly large tank to successfully have more than one pair.

 

[DeePDiSHeD]

It works for some people. But a 40 breader is probably too small though.

 

[Toddrtrex]

There is no way I would attempt it. Been keeping clowns since 1992, and in my experience anything more then one pair will end up being one pair (( with the extras being killed )). It may work in the short term, but once one of the pairs starts spawning, all bets are off.

 

[Ethan_W]

even if it is a very large tank you should still never keep more than 1 pair

 

[snorvich]

The folks I have seen keep multiple clownfish have VERY large tanks (300 gallon is not swimming pool size) and usually as Todd says, they do not pair them and have multiple anemones for association. Otherwise multiple pairs will become ONE pair. So to answer the original poster, the short answer is NO.

 

[deangelr]

how about 2 pairs of clowns in that small of a tank with some sort of center divider? like eggcrate or something maybe they could see through as well?

 

[Spar]

They are likely to try to fight between the divider if they can see each other, and possibly injure themselves.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Mike P]

I have even heard of 2 pairs fighting in a larger than 300gal before.

I used to ask the question about 10+ clowns in a 30 or so gal at your LFS and why they don't fight. I guess you can pull it off when they are still young. Once they find their significant other, it doesn't work.

I really wanted a pair of "regulars" and blacks in my 180 till I learned about it. I don't have any clowns in there yet, but when I do, I think I'm going to try 1 black and 1 "regular (orange)". I hear that it's possible if they are from the same family (ocellaris). I also heard that there is a VERY slim chance they will mate, but they will pair.

I hope that helps in deciding which type you want.

 

[Ethan_W]

I have even heard of 2 pairs fighting in a larger than 300gal before.

I used to ask the question about 10+ clowns in a 30 or so gal at your LFS and why they don't fight. I guess you can pull it off when they are still young. Once they find their significant other, it doesn't work.

I really wanted a pair of "regulars" and blacks in my 180 till I learned about it. I don't have any clowns in there yet, but when I do, I think I'm going to try 1 black and 1 "regular (orange)". I hear that it's possible if they are from the same family (ocellaris). I also heard that there is a VERY slim chance they will mate, but they will pair.

I hope that helps in deciding which type you want.

i work at a fish store and the reason we can keep multiple clowns in one tank is because they are all from the same clutch of eggs and are all juveniles. from some of the things ive seen clowns dont even have to be at maturity to be aggressive towards the other clowns in the tank. hence why you never mix more than 2 in your home aquarium

 

[izzy123]

okay, a definite no no..... thanks for answering my question........ I still would like to see a 300G (or more) tank tho....... not a swimming pool you say.......
That is almost 8 times my puny tank!! how do you clean the windows on a monster like that???........ scuba gear??:lolspin:

Anyway, thanks for the info you guys

Ivan

 

[xlotus123x]

I love clownfishes. I would have 10 in my tank if it was possible. :fish1:

 

[shifty51008]

plenty of 300 gal. + tanks in this forum

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=252

 

[saltyseaman01]

i had a 220gal and had a pair of marron clowns in there for 6 months and added a larger pair of occ clowns and in 25min one of my marrons were dead. so id say no way in a 40

 

[vibrantfishluvr]

Hello,

So, I got my tank set up(40G breeder with a 25G sump), cycled and I have a CUC in there and two clowns (occelaris), the "regular" kind

But I was wondering if I could keep another pair of black and white clowns in there too, or is that asking for trouble?

Thanks

Ivan

If the new clownfish are Ocellaris and sexless you can keep all four in the tank without any problems. I had 4 Ocellaris clownfish in my 40 breeder and once they established who was in charge they all got along well. While an adult pair is present the rest will remain sexless.