Clown fish questions

[LeJeune981]

My girlfriend would like me to get a couple clown fish...
Currently I have no fish.. just assorted zoas..2 leathers..3 hidden cup corals..and a frogspawn..
Pincushion urchin. 20 or so astrea snails..and 20 or so hermits..
Tank info is a 90 gallon reef and 46 gallon fuge..

I guess my question is when would be a good time to get clowns. And is my tank big enough for 2.. and any warnings or cautions I should consider.. I would like to get a mating pair.. not really sure how to sex them when I buy them
Thanks in advance

 

[Tiwo]

Well 90 gallons is definitely big enough for 2 clowns. I wouldn't be worried about them eating or destroying things, as they are generally reef safe.

As for the mating pair goes it might be a few bucks more to get a pair but you can always just get 2 small ones and they will decide who is dominant and eventually pair up.


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[nereefpat]

90 is big enough for two, if they are the same species. As for the pairing, I agree to get two small ones (males) and the dominant one will get big and turn female.

What species of clowns? If you stick with smaller species, like occ or percs, I see no problems. A pair of clarkiis or maroons would limit other future fishes in the tank.

 

[ReeferNoob4ever]

As stated above, be careful which ones you choose. They all tend to be aggressive, but maroons and others can be so aggressive you may not be able to add anymore fish especially if the clowns are the first fish introduced. I have a golden nugget and he attacks anything that gets near his anemone. 90 gallons is plenty room. My LFS actually sells already paired clowns...good luck!

 

[reef tank 2.0]

my first two fish i bought for mine were two percula clowns. after a few months together, they finally figured out who was gonna be the female. i have had them for almost two years now, and have not seen any aggression from them at all. They pretty much keep to themselves

 

[LeJeune981]

I'm thinking perculama clowns.. "nemos" as she refers to them..
I didn't know that they switched sex like that. I will purchase 2 little ones then and let them decide...
I have read they were agressive.. that is why I was wondering if they would be ok for first fish.. or I'd I should wait and get them last..
I will be getting her, her clowns in the next week or two.. and some brownie points for me too... thanks everyone

 

[schnebbles]

I love my clowns. The tank wouldn't be the same without them. They are always out and never hiding. I lost one of mine when I crashed my tank but I was lucky and ordered another one from LA and it gets along great with my current one.

 

[monkeysee1]

You might want to hold off adding these two clowns (and yes, they ALWAYS do best in pairs) until you have at least three or four LESS aggressive fish in your tank first. Clownfish ARE NOT the sweet little saints they are made out to be.
I have a pair (an onyx and white and an orange and white Ocellaris) and they are little s----its.
I have a ninety gallon as well, and I definitely WOULD NOT get any more -ever. When these two little demons go - NO MORE. I'll get some nicer and prettier fish to replace them.