Clownfish hosting to Frogspawn - Negative Interaction!

[ange062]

So I have had a problem for a few weeks, searched the internet and found ALL kinds of things about sick clowns with the "mouth stuck open" problem but very little solution.

My clown started hosting my frogspawn a while back, and I didn't notice any problems until it started sleeping under the frogspawn instead of its normal corner up at the top of the tank.

Soon after, the clown had the dreaded mouth stuck open syndrome. There was noticeable swelling of the mouth, including redness around the jaw externally. The clown also looked lethargic and was swimming like it was sick. It was eating readily through the whole ordeal. It would get better and worse, but never 100%.

I finally stuck the clown in a breeder box, and within two hours it was looking 100% better. I decided to get the frogspawn back to the LFS for credit, and since then the clown is still looking 100% better.

The only thing I can conclude is that the frogspawn was stinging the clown to near death at the end.

Wanted to put this out there in case anyone else is having a similar problem. If you have a clown and a frogspawn, and your clown has lockjaw or its mouth stuck open and is behaving out of the norm, take a look first at getting rid of that frogspawn.

 

[hollister]

Clowns can host any coral. My guess is low oxygen may have stressed him out.
Whats used for water flow and do you have a lid on this tank?

Salt water gets its oxygen from the surface and if flow is low and or theres a lid on the tank you get poor gas exchange at the surface.

 

[b0bab0ey]

Frogspawns, like all LPS, have stinging sweeper tentacles that mainly come out at night searching for food. It's very possible your clown was getting stung in the mouth at night by these tentacles. I have a pretty big Frogspawn that beats back my GSP every night.

 

[ange062]

Clowns can host any coral. My guess is low oxygen may have stressed him out.
Whats used for water flow and do you have a lid on this tank?

Salt water gets its oxygen from the surface and if flow is low and or theres a lid on the tank you get poor gas exchange at the surface.

The tank has an MP10, two 266gph filtration pumps, and an oversized skimmer. Not to mention the other fish, corals, and inverts are just fine. Tank husbandry wasn't the question here. All my water parameters have been rock solid for 8-months.

In this case it was 100% related to the clown hosting the frogspawn and being stung. I was just posting this informationally in case others were having the same issue...

 

[stever1216]

My frogspawn is about to go back to the LFS too.
He stung 3 new chromis hidding close to him and now 2 dispar anthias.
These fish were on the small side and they all died.
I noticed that most of the dying fish had dark or redish sting marks on them.
I'll find another green coral to replace him.

 

[F.Q. Schwartz]

So I have had a problem for a few weeks, searched the internet and found ALL kinds of things about sick clowns with the "mouth stuck open" problem but very little solution.

My clown started hosting my frogspawn a while back, and I didn't notice any problems until it started sleeping under the frogspawn instead of its normal corner up at the top of the tank.

Soon after, the clown had the dreaded mouth stuck open syndrome. There was noticeable swelling of the mouth, including redness around the jaw externally. The clown also looked lethargic and was swimming like it was sick. It was eating readily through the whole ordeal. It would get better and worse, but never 100%.

I finally stuck the clown in a breeder box, and within two hours it was looking 100% better. I decided to get the frogspawn back to the LFS for credit, and since then the clown is still looking 100% better.

The only thing I can conclude is that the frogspawn was stinging the clown to near death at the end.

Wanted to put this out there in case anyone else is having a similar problem. If you have a clown and a frogspawn, and your clown has lockjaw or its mouth stuck open and is behaving out of the norm, take a look first at getting rid of that frogspawn.

I actually had my True Perc decide yesterday to host my frogspawn for the first time.
Apparently, the frogspawn stung him and killed him.

He lowered himself into the coral, was "cleaning" and all of a sudden it looked like he was hit with a cattle prod, he swam to the right on his side and tried to burrow under a rock, where he proceeded to look paralyzed, gills and fins moving slowly...

I removed him to an aerated tank with his tank water in it to try to revive him, but it didn't work...

 

[snorvich]

Corals that sting which host clownfish (clownfish do not host, the corals host) can have two negative outcomes: the coral gets damaged, the clownfish gets stung.

 

[Tank2379]

My little male onyx started to be hosted by my frogspawn he gots white like fungal spots on him he seems healthy and is eating. I though it was Brooknella for a minute but my other clown is super healthy still and it's been 2 weeks...One spot under his Gil has a big white spot and is red around it. He sleeps in the Fragspawn everynight. I'm still wondering if its a sting or disease

 

[MrReef101]

Wow crazy....i have a pair of clowns that hosting a torch n a frogspawn....and da torch n frogspawn are right next to each out...its been about a month now n they arr happy as can b

 

[I_H8_JDM]

I also had a clown that hosted a hammer. He would get sting marks all over and sometimes be a little slow.
He hosted the hammer all the time, day and night.

Once the hammer was removed the clown's health was much better.


Sent from my iPhone8

 

[chiblackhawks4]

Its interesting that regardless of being stung they still have such an instinctive mentality they cant help themselves.

 

[Arc Drafter]

This seems a little fishy to me BHAHAHA. In all seriousness I have seen several clowns pair with several different frogspawn, torches, Hammers, candycanes/trumpet corals, and obviously anemones. It seems odd to me that a fish that has built an immunity/adaptation/defence for the stings of a coral that it would be stung by a different coral. Are we to believe that the mucus secreted from the clown to protect from the anemone doesn't work against any other sting? Further, I have seen several of my chromis hide in my torch. I have suspicion that it was something else bothering the clowns and not the frog spawn IMO. But I don't know everything and it is definitly an interesting topic.

 

[christopherjudd]

bump on this topic, going through the same ordeal, any tips besides removing the frog spawn?

 

[ReyR]

I believe this is happening to me too. My female clown started this past weekend hosting my hammer. It's never hosted anything except a corner of my tank. Today it's mouth is open and swollen. funny thing is, it hasn't deterred her from going in the hammer. Still happy. But with a big swollen open mouth. I don't want to get rid of either. I've had both a year.