clownfish feeding anemone

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13753955#post13753955 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dalilgriffith
they arent really feeding anything. They are hoarding their food.

+1. They're greedy little buggers...they're trying to save it for later so no one else can get any.

Joke's on them, anemones just happen to like to eat small chunks of things that are conveniently placed within their tentacles.
 
It could be hoarding, it could be feeding. I have a tomato clown that feeds her anenome. Actually pushes the food into the tentacles near the mouth.

I also have an occellaris clown that hoards, brings food back to her nest. And she doesn't have an anenome.

I have never seen this behavior in the males for what it's worth.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13754280#post13754280 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by noboddi
It could be hoarding, it could be feeding. I have a tomato clown that feeds her anenome. Actually pushes the food into the tentacles near the mouth.
I have never seen this behavior in the males for what it's worth.

I definitely agree here. Its a bit of both.

I have regularly seem my female tomato feed her bta-without any hoarding behavior. I have also observed my male tomato mimicking her behavior - and delivering food to it's host (although not as often).

In my opinion:
Clowns know when their host needs a meal - only when my female is ravenous will she devour the silversides meant for the bta- and when their host has been without a meal for a while, it definitely gets priority.
 
My GSM feeds. She doesn't have a nem (yet) but she feeds her mushroom. Yesterday she caught a stomatella that was half dead from a powerhead accident, carried it to her 'shroom and placed it in the mouth. She even got mad when the 'shroom didn't accept it and kept shoving the snail with her nose into the mouth area. She also cleans the 'shroom. I've seen her do housekeeping in it. If something lands on it she'll pick it up and carry it away. Such a cool fish.:)
 
Mine have never fed the anemones. They do try to take it away tho.
 
Slakker is right they are saving food for later lol. They drop it in the Nem because it may be to big to swallow at the time or they are full.

Tested this several times. With food size etc. He's right.
 
Unless you see an anenome eat a fish I would not automatically assume that is the case. Especially a clown. BTAs in the wild don't normally catch whole fish. They don't get hungry in a few days. They can in fact go weeks and months without food as they are photosynthetic for the majority of their needs. Anenomes have some of the lowest dietary requirements of any animal. They are not little Audreys.

I have only seen one fish eaten by an anenome. It was a powder blue tang that was nibbling too close to a carpet and got nabbed. Carpet anenomes have very strong stings and are very bid. This one was almost 2 feet. Tangs are dumb around anenomes - they see algae and don't use common sense.

I had a flamehawk that was stung often by a long tentacled anenome (Macrodactyla doreensis). I had a tomato clown pair in the same tank. The clown used to harass him and run for cover in the anenome. When the hawk chased to close he would get tagged by the anenome. Then he would sit on a rock and twitch for a bit.

BTAs have very weak stings. Long tentacles have a much stronger sting and could not kill the hawk. I doubt a BTA they could kill a fish, and certainly not a good swimmer. The fish simply won't stay in the anenome long enough to be lunch.

There are many reason fish perish. Could be another predator in the tank you don't know about. Fish corpses also don't last for days. Pods, crabs, shrimps, all will devour the corpse in a day or two.

And clowns don't get eaten by anenomes. They bathe themselves in the anenome slime and the anenome can't tell the difference between the fish and themselves.

There are many more likely suspects for eating clowns.
 
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