clarkii question

[StrategicReef]

LFS has two and a little under 2" they look similar to this color so they are not juvi

Are they female yet that the size I described is it a bad idea getting both of them will they still pair up?

 

[Toddrtrex]

Are they in the same tank?

IME, Clarkiis don't show as much size difference (( once mature )) as other clowns.

While I no longer have my pair, you can see in this picture of them that there isn't that much of a size difference b/t the female and male -- they were about 9 years old in this pic,

 

[Jersey Bounce]

Are they female yet that the size I described is it a bad idea getting both of them will they still pair up?

If they're in the same tank at the LFS and they aren't roughing each other up or staying at opposite ends of the tank, then you should have a pretty good chance of them pairing up or staying paired. In my experience, Clarkii pairs don't stay in as close proximity to each other as other clowns do. I only have one adult pair at the moment, but they seem to be much more comfortable being apart than do my ocellaris, percula, polymnus, akindynos, bicinctus, etc.

If they're not in the same tank, yet your goal is to obtain a "mated" pair, I would explain to the department manager what you're hoping to acquire and ask if they would be willing to move both fish to a new tank (instead of adding one to another's established territory) so that you can observe how they interact. If they seem to at least tolerate each other for the first 30 minutes or so, I'd then ask if they would be willing to put them on hold for you for at least 48 hours (ideally) just in case. I've acquired a few pair of clowns this way through local fish stores and have had good success.

 

[StrategicReef]

would no host be OK for them?
I have some duncans but it's not a guarantee.
If the duncans are irritated I will have to remove them so there would be no host.


Also, are they really mean when they get bigger?

 

[velvetelvis]

IME, they're mean when they're little.

To other fish, that is...mine never attacked me. On the other hand, they were still very young. Given a couple of years, I'm sure I would have suffered, too. But they're beautiful fish and entertaining to watch.

If you're worried about your duncans, you might want to try a long-polyped toadstool. I kept one with my Clark's pair, and the female took to it almost right away. The coral didn't seem to "mind"; it actually grew faster with her using it as a host.

 

[Jersey Bounce]

They're perfectly fine without a host.

Clarkiis are at least moderately aggressive for clownfish in my opinion, but mine never harmed other fish when they were in my reef tank. The female would occasionally shoo another fish away or "keep them where she wanted them" but never injured anyone.

 

[cody6766]

mine picked on my clown goby and my mccoskers wrasse quite a bit. Mine are both young (2", tops) and have claimed the 33g as theirs. They share it with a yellow watchman that coexists happily, but I'd be hesitant to add another fish after seeing the bullying. Like Jersey said, they never harmed them, but they sure kept them out of sight. It was really stressful for the other 2 fish.

 

[StrategicReef]

so is the clarkii with almost no black just basically juvi? They all grow to have a black body right?

Thanks

 

[StrategicReef]

also what is the track record of jumping on clarkiis? I always had occelaris and percs but one by one, they always jumped mostly while sleeping in a corner of the tank at night (no host)

 

[ocello]

Black pigment on Clark's is often associated with clowns that have been hosting Metern's anemone's. Are they wild caught?

 

[StrategicReef]

Black pigment on Clark's is often associated with clowns that have been hosting Metern's anemone's. Are they wild caught?

given their size I am pretty sure they are wild caught.

 

[StrategicReef]

how do you tell the Clarkii from the Sebae? They look so similar.

 

[Big E]

Black pigment on Clark's is often associated with clowns that have been hosting Metern's anemone's. Are they wild caught

I'm not sure where you're getting this from, but there are black clarks & it doesn't matter if they are with an anenome or not.