Clownfish Are Stupid

[Zire]

I picked up a mated pair of Clarkii's yesterday. Both are plump, active and kinda dumb. They completely ignore the BTA I added to the tank for them(about 5-6 months ago) and have instead decided to host my Bubble coral. What's the big idea? They won't even stray far enough from the Bubble coral to reach the anemone? Is there any way I could encourage them to host in the BTA instead?

 

[Wolverine]

Moved.

Clownfish will host in a lot of different animals, and there's not often much rhyme or reason to what they choose. Some people think that it's more location dependent than type of host, or that this at least plays a big role. So one option, if possible would be to switch spots. Of course, this might not work if they're happily settled in to the bubble.

Another option, if you have another tank, would be to move the bubble to the other tank until the clowns find a new host.

 

[Zire]

Unfortunately I don't have another tank and both the anemone and bubble coral are firmly affixed to their rocks . Could i maybe guide them towards the BTA with food on a stick?

 

[sikk50]

I had a pair of clowns host my flower pot rather than my anemony once. Not much I could do until I lost the flower pot

 

[Zire]

I had a pair of clowns host my flower pot rather than my anemony once. Not much I could do until I lost the flower pot

. I might need to get rid of the clowns then, I like them, but I like the bubble more. Regardless, i guess i just gotta see how it goes.

 

[velvetelvis]

Not stupid...just unaware that they are apparently there for your entertainment.

Seriously though, there's no guarantee that any other clowns would go into the anemone, either. Clark's are actually some of the easiest clowns to get to use a host anemone (or coral). Just give them some time, and don't try to force them. Patience is essential in this hobby.

 

[Zire]

I had a pair of clowns host my flower pot rather than my anemony once. Not much I could do until I lost the flower pot

. I might need to get rid of the clowns then, I like them, but I like the bubble more. Regardless, i guess i just gotta see how it goes.

 

[Zire]

Not stupid...just unaware that they are apparently there for your entertainment.

Seriously though, there's no guarantee that any other clowns would go into the anemone, either. Clark's are actually some of the easiest clowns to get to use a host anemone (or coral). Just give them some time, and don't try to force them. Patience is essential in this hobby.

It is still kind of stupid though. They're potentially killing the host they're supposed to be forming a symbiotic relationship with, harming something from which they both mutually benefit.

 

[trwells]

They also live in a glass box, so the whole "supposed to" thing is sort of out the window.

Maybe they are intelligent and this is how they are making you suffer.

 

[Zire]

They also live in a glass box, so the whole "supposed to" thing is sort of out the window.

Maybe they are intelligent and this is how they are making you suffer.

I guess that's true, but at the same time I don't see how being moved to an environment which aims to replicate their own natural origins would change their behaviour in such a way? Dogs still act very much like wolves even after thousands of years of domestication and being moved from forests and tundras to cities and suburbs. Or am I seeing this the wrong way?

 

[velvetelvis]

How are they killing the anemone by not going into it? Host anemones don't need to host clownfish in order to survive in captivity. In some cases--such as if the clowns are too large or aggressive, or the anemone is too weak--they're actually better off not hosting clownfish. Clownfish can be rough on host anemones.

Aquariums in no way replicate the ocean, aside from containing saltwater and perhaps some of the fishes, corals, and other life that might occupy the same habitat in the wild. They are a comparatively infinitesimal quantity of water that moreover isn't influenced by tides, seasonal fluctations, spawning cycles, predators...the list goes on and on. Your clownfish may be in a good, appropriate habitat, but it's in no way a natural one.

Finally, it's a bit hasty to assume that the fish are permanently rejecting the anemone. Each clownfish is an individual. Some might take to a host right away. Some will do so eventually. Some never will at all. Your fish aren't "stupid" or reacting improperly to their environment; they're just not doing what you want them to right away. Have some patience and give them time.

 

[Zire]

How are they killing the anemone by not going into it? Host anemones don't need to host clownfish in order to survive in captivity. In some cases--such as if the clowns are too large or aggressive, or the anemone is too weak--they're actually better off not hosting clownfish. Clownfish can be rough on host anemones.

Aquariums in no way replicate the ocean, aside from containing saltwater and perhaps some of the fishes, corals, and other life that might occupy the same habitat in the wild. They are a comparatively infinitesimal quantity of water that moreover isn't influenced by tides, seasonal fluctations, spawning cycles, predators...the list goes on and on. Your clownfish may be in a good, appropriate habitat, but it's in no way a natural one.

Finally, it's a bit hasty to assume that the fish are permanently rejecting the anemone. Each clownfish is an individual. Some might take to a host right away. Some will do so eventually. Some never will at all. Your fish aren't "stupid" or reacting improperly to their environment; they're just not doing what you want them to right away. Have some patience and give them time.

I apologize, I worded this wrong. I never meant to say that the clownfish were harming the anemone by not residing in it(I mentioned in my first post that the anemone has been living happily in the tank sans clownfish for about half a year). I meant that I find it odd that these clownfish chose a bubble coral as a host instead of the BTA in the tank. I meant that they are harming or killing a host which they generally don't form a symbiotic relationship with as opposed to simply adopting the anemone in the tank.

Also, I didn't mean to imply that reef aquariums perfectly emulate the ocean or anything like that. I just don't understand how living in one could alter their behaviour in such a way that they choose to adopt a coral over an anemone. I drew a comparison between the domesticated dog and their wild relatives, wolves. Even though dogs have been continuously domesticated for thousands of years they still retain many characteristics of wolves despite being placed in environments more and more disimilar from their original habitat. So I don't get how being transferred to an artificial environment which aims to replicate their own could so quickly alter a clownfish's behaviour, one which is either wild caught or has only a couple generations of being bred in aquariums.

I haven't yet discounted that the clownfish will in time be adopted by the anemone, which is why posted in the "Tips and Tricks to get my BTA to Host my Clown" thread on the first page of the anemone/clownfish forum. If you have any suggestions for how to encourage my clowns to host my BTa I'd really appreciate it if you relayed them to me.

I hope I didn't come off as rude or anything, that wasn't my intention.

 

[snorvich]

. I might need to get rid of the clowns then, I like them, but I like the bubble more. Regardless, i guess i just gotta see how it goes.

Clowns often associate with corals and kill them. Your choice.

 

[slojmn]

Yep, Clowns will definitely be kind of rough on corals and can inadvertently kill them with the irritation they cause. You just never know what they will do when it comes to the symbiotic nature of hosting. My clown pairs, I have one pair in each tank, took 7 months to finally get back in their original RBTA after a tank move when we moved two tanks from the house to the garage while we had the floors redone. They were only away from their respective anemones for about 2 hours. I re-did the rock structure in both tanks but as close to original as I could and they ignored their respective anemones. Then they were finally moved to the new tanks back in the house it took 6 months for one pair to find their anemone in one tank and the other pair a month after that in the other tank. Patience was the key .
My guess is that your pair might be quite content with the bubble coral and may not move on. I liked the idea of moving the rocks around. It's a pain but could work.

 

[Wolverine]

Have you seen damage? I've seen clowns host in bubbles, elegances, and Euphyllia corals for years with no signs of injuring them.

Are the clowns tank-raised? If not, were they in a tank with a different kind of anemone before? Some clowns seem to not want to jump to different anemone species when moved from their original host.

 

[Wolverine]

Unfortunately I don't have another tank and both the anemone and bubble coral are firmly affixed to their rocks . Could i maybe guide them towards the BTA with food on a stick?

I forgot to comment on this part, you can try, but my bet is that they will attack the stick, and then dive deeper into the bubble, increasing the chance of them (or you) injuring the coral.

 

[rssjsb]

You might try to put a strawberry basket over the coral to keep them out of it for awhile. Maybe they'll move to the anemone.

Otherwise, if you can't move the coral, you'll just have to wait and see. Assuming they were wild-caught, these fish have been ripped out of their natural habitat and shipped thousands of miles in plastic bags. It's not too surprising that they glom onto the first secure-looking thing they come across. Especially in the first few days in your tank.

 

[xjdiver]

I agree with rssjsb, to actually answer your question, just put a rigid container over the corals when the clowns aren't in, try maybe drilling some holes in a large plastic vase or something. Just leave that on for a couple days and the clowns (should) move.

 

[Wolverine]

You might try to put a strawberry basket over the coral to keep them out of it for awhile. Maybe they'll move to the anemone.

Sometimes that works, but I've often seen the clownfish move back to the original host once the cage is removed, even if they've hosted in the anemone in the meantime.

 

[bues0022]

dogs/wolves=clownfish, apples=oranges. poor comparison IMO. You're trying to justify a clownfish behavior as if it had significant reasoning abilities akin to humans. Just because an anemone is SUPPOSED to host a clownfish doesn't necessarily make it a turn-key operation. If you search on the board, you will find MANY cases where LPS have hosted clowns both successfully, and unsuccessfully. You will also find MANY cases of people not getting their nem to host the clownfish for months-years even. Not being hosted after a day is not surprising at all. Patience, and understanding.