clown and nem ?'s

[geckoejon]

hello,

i have a 75g mixed reef tank that is doing well. i have a pair of ocellaris clowns that have paired up with the black / white the dominant (female) one. i could use some advice / experience shared, if you all would be so kind. here is a stocking list...

2 - ocellaris
1 - firefish
1 - sunburst anthias
1 - clown goby
1 - manderin
1 - orange spot goby

first.... will the female clown always act aggressive? she seems to bully the firefish and single sunburst. only 4 fish are usually swimming and the others are perched inside or swimming though the lr. will the larger clown always be dominant to the point of chasing other fish? they are not spawning. the smaller ocellaris jumped into the return yesterday. wondering if the black / white is too aggressive and need to be traded in, or if it's the norm???? thoughts?

second.... any thoughts on a good first nem? i think they are beautiful, and the relationship between nems and clowns is awesome. i have never had one though. looking for something colorful, hopefully won't move much and sting other coral, and something that will hopefully host the ocellaris pair. thoughts?

thanks...

 

[garygb]

All anemones can sting corals, and vice versa. With ocellaris, the natural hosts and the ones that you can count on to host in your tank are magnifica, gigantea, and mertens. Those are all considered advanced species, as the survival rate is poor for the first two and mertens are never available. Generally, Entacmaea quadricolor is the best host species for someone who hasn't kept an anemone before. They are often accepted by ocellaris and they are fairly hardy. If given proper conditions, they will stay put. I've kept them for years and what I find is they prefer undetectable nitrates, moderate water flow, I keep the temp around 80-82F, although that species is found in water cooler than that as well. They need reef quality lighting, though are not as light demanding as most host species, the specific gravity should be 1.025-1.027, and they need live rock with holes and caves to plant their foot. They are happiest with their foot planted in a hole with the liverock around their column. They also will be happy with their foot on the underside of a liverock over hang, with the column extending out, essentially the anemone making the shape of a J.

 

[geckoejon]

thank you for the feedback. i have also has several other people suggest entacmaea as well. i believe i will give them a whirl. the nitrates are undetectable in my system even feeding twice a day for 3 months. i took my time setting up the sump area and cycling this tank properly, unlike the last one. lol i have good led's on the tank as well. they grow my birds nest quickly, so i would assume they would be sufficient for bubble tips as well. i believe i have an end of the tank that would be a good spot. similar to what you described with low flow and plenty of live rock formations. i have a lfs that gets some really nice ones in. i think i will have him find one for me. i will move all of the coral close by, and give it a whirl.

any idea how fast they can move? wondering about it moving when i am not around. would it be able to move from one end of the tank to the other in a day stinging everything it went past?

 

[nemmy]

If it was really on a mission yeah it could cover that much ground. But they usually make pit stops to "test out the water" so to speak. Their sting is pretty mild so I don't think it would decimate your tank. But it will certainly annoy some corals and kill if it stays too long.