Can you pair a Perc and Skunk?

sugartooth

Reef bully
Hello. I have a small picasso that has been separated from a gold Maroon for a few months. I'm hesitant to try it again and wanted to find out if I can put the perc in with a skunk (sandarcinos) and have them be okay? The skunk is about 2 years old and the only clown in a 170 reef.

Or, should I try the Maroon again? Ideally, I don't want to buy mates for each clown and house them all separately since I'm trying to consolidate.

My consolidation will include two satellite 39 gallon cubes with Haddoni's in them. My guess is both the Skunk and Perc would be okay in the Haddoni, but not the Maroon....correct?


So, if the skunk/perc combo works, then I would find a mate for the Maroon. I really like it.

If Maroon and perc works, I think I will get rid of the skunk.

I am open to other suggestions as well. Thanks in advance.
 
MarinaP: Thank you. I guess I should, shouldn't I?

With the gig move, well....I'm super nervous so I'm taking it slow. I have had the tank running for a couple weeks to leak test, get salinity up, and add rock and sand. I want to wait a few months before trying to put a gigantea in there. I was thinking about breaking down the original tank and transferring everything over....but thinking about it some more, I guess I should move one over to see if it does well and then move the rest.

I'm overall happy with the tank. There are a few details that were missed or not done as I would have liked it. It's a 150 gallon cube and stand and canopy made with reclaimed wood and mahagony veneer. Thanks so much for asking!

Here it is:
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Tank looks good. I had similar mahogany stand and hood for my 90g. Salt creep was just killing me, it was so obvious on dark wood. Maybe there is some kind of a repellent. Or maybe you are just a tidy person ;)

I had to install fans under the hood.

Plastic carpet pad seemed like a good idea to have under the stand (does yours sit on the tile? -- I cannot tell from the picture).

Also, you might want to think ahead and design the sump in such a way that there is not much noise and splashing. It gets loud for a family/living room.
 
+1 to trying with the skunk. I would think it would have a better chance of success than with the maroon. It didn't work for me a few years ago, but the tank I was trying to keep them in was way smaller than your 170... The skunk bullied the osc. quite a bit, so I ended up having to move him to another tank..
 
Thank you Tobb. I will always remember it!

MarinaP: Thanks for the tip. I've been playing around with the overflow and durso because it's driving me nuts. The sump is located downstairs so thank goodness I don't have to hear the pump. My problem now is also some Tunze 6205's and the vibration is LOUD! As for the mahagony, only time will tell if it holds up. I'm very messy too, but was assured by the woodworker the 'eco friendly' polyeurathane coating will hold up. I don't know, my bet is on the water.
It's sitting on carpet. We were going to put tile down, but I really didn't want to rip anything up.

jt milstead: I was hopeful that they may be nice. It was okay for about 4-5 months and then when I felt that there was some stress on picasso, I pulled him out thinking maybe I can try again later. The maroon seemed more gentle that most descriptions of maroons so I thought I would try it out.

surf: Thanks, that's one more vote for SKUNK!
 
Hahaha...Punks would be cute. :)

I had to get a new camera.....but here is the updated picture of how the tank looks now.
I chose different macro this time and it should be easier to prune and not give off the 'fuzzy' look of that other red macro in the original tank (although I like it, and so do my tangs).

Most prized rock I have:
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right side with some sponges:

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left side:
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full tank:

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I'm hoping the giganteas fill in the bare spots, but you know they will settle wherever they want to settle!

Here is the updated pic of the latest gigantea that was labelled as 'true yellow'. I would say it's more green than yellow:

4488456688_338bc384c8_b.jpg
 
Geez, that full tank shot looks horrible.

I guess it doesn't show up well, the tank is 3 foot deep (3 foot cube).
 
So you are currently keeping both the A. Percula and A. sandarcinos singly and seperatly? If this is the case, and you have been doing so for monthes, both of your specimens are female. Which means imminent death for one of your clowns. If you'd like to mate a conspecific pair I would recomend purchasing a known juvinile or male of the different species and introduce it slowly to one of the established females you already care for.
 
It's always more of a risk mixing species for sure, I'm not a fan of it, and agree maroons are high on the aggro list.
I'm a fan of picassos, so I would even prefer a cheap B/C if budget is an issue, or even just a regular perc, maybe an SI/PNG.
But of all the clowns I've had and read about, skunks do seem the most passive, and that could work out.
I would prefer a mated pair myself to just 2 that just got along, or stayed away from each other.
BTW carpenter myself, LOVE that stand, looks great, nice design.
I also use African Mahogany when given the choice.
 
I had 2 pink skunks in with a false perc for about 2 months. At first one skunk was always hanging on the false perc and I thought they might pair, but eventually nature took its course and the skunks paired. They seemed passive till they paired, but after it became 24/7 harassment, so I separated the 2 species. I think its worth a shot, and as long as you are prepared to deal with them not pairing up, I say go for it.
 
sugartooth, I love your aquascape. I think that will be stunning with the gigs filling it out, and some kind of clowns (I vote for a pair of percs, esp. since they are hosted by S. gigantea in nature) being hosted by them...I can't wait for pictures once the tank is established and stocked. :fun4:

I've been looking around for some assorted marcoalgae, and choices are limited. There will be no cuelerpa of any kind in my tanks, ever. So far I am leaning towards ordering from here
http://reefcleaners.org/index.php?page=shop.browse&category_id=6&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=34

Where are you getting your macro from?

OT: MarinaP, I've always gotten mine from Gulf Coast Ecosystems. They're a little low on stock right now on account of the season, but they're really helpful about making suggestions and answering questions. I've bought from them several times and always been happy with the results.

I currently have some nice macros in my tank--a red agar (I think), padina or "scroll" algae, some codium that's sprouting out of my LR, and tons and tons of halimeda. If the halimeda gets out of control, I could always send you some. ;) Once it settles in, it forms beautiful lush green clusters on the rocks and sand and volunteers all over the tank. I love it (and it makes a great hiding place for pods and tiny brittle stars).

ETA: Oh, and the scroll algae is also popping up everywhere--I just had to remove two huge colonies of it from the output tubes in my Solana. If you want any, I could probably spare some.
 
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