Clown question...

[milomlo]

I ordered 2 Ocellaris Clown Fish (Amphiprion ocellaris) from Reefs2go.
I am wondering if it is possible to have 2 different types of clowns instead cause one is really deep orange color with is middle stripe only partly there. The other one has all his stripes but his color is not as orange. They seem to not get along all the time. If you need pictures let me know and I will post them.
Is this behavior normal? I know one will become dominate over the other. However I don't remember my other ones nipping at each other.

 

[Tmoriarty]

They chances are if you ordered two false percula clowns that is what you got. They can range in color from bright orange to burnt orange and various colors in between. If they were not previously paired then yes they can go through a power struggle to determine dominance, especially if one is not already sexed.

 

[milomlo]

Ok thanks

 

[Toxic45]

As long as they're the same species they will be compatible in pairing. Some people have success pairing black ocellairs and regular orange ocellaris clowns. If the two were not previously paired before you got them in your tank then you will notice a fair amount of aggression. Assuming they are both young and juveniles (sexless or both male) then they will pair, but there may be brutal fighting until they do. My little guys fought very hard for almost two weeks and ended up shredding each other's fins. After that they healed up quickly and got along very well. If you ordered them from a reputable company then chances are they are both the same species, even if they have variation in color, so you don't have anything to worry about. A lot of the time when they sell you same species clownfish then they are from the same litter of broodstock and are very similar. If you got two that don't look alike they may be wild caught or from different parents. If you ever try to breed them then you can breed cool little mix children and get cool variations because of the genetic differences from the non-related parents. (In fish breeding, breeding from the same litter doesn't produce terrible deformities or abnormalities as you'd think, but mixing in different mates gives cool variations e.g. snowflake or picasso clownfish mutants)