Clowns hosting in Elegance

[rcypert]

As the title say does anyone have clownfish hosting in their elegance coral or any past experience that is pertinent? I recently acquired an elegance and my true percs took to it immediately. They were removed and now are in a 5"x6" box that hangs on the side of the tank. There is a rose bubble in there with them. I have thought about releasing the bubble and letting it roam around my SPS reef and hoping that they would take it rather then the elegance as a host. But the bubble killing off my sps scares me and Im not even sure they would want it once release due to its size. Will they kill the elegance by hosting it? Any input would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Jeremy Blaze]

It is usually bad for the elegance. They will get iritated, not fully open and slowly die.

 

[rcypert]

Did you have one die? How long did it last? Were the clowns aggressive with it? Thanks for the input.

 

[Jeremy Blaze]

Basically the clowns wollow in it like it is an anemone. The coral does not like this, and thus retracts.

It will contiune to retract as long as the clowns are irritating it.

 

[oceanarium]

I would not worry to much unless the elegance looks like its not liking the hosting. I had a pair of percs host in one for 5 years. They feed it so much it out grew the tank it was in. So i fraged it. They moved over to a large toadstool rather than try to sleep in a tiny frag.

Never seen a elegance grow so fast as this one did with the hosting, it had huge wide valleys. realy healthy polyps. it started at 1 1/2 inch and finished up at about ten extending over one third the lenght of a 4 foot tank.

 

[Serioussnaps]

Start a species tank. Either an elegance tank or a clown/anemone tank. I would just go buy a 20-30ish gallon tank and have a clown/anemone tank.

 

[rcypert]

Thank you for your responses. Oceanarium that is very interesting. Did the Elegance have a period to settle in or did the clowns begin hosting immediately?

 

[oceanarium]

Thinking back 6 or so years its a little hazy but I would think the percs came a little latter.

 

[elegance coral]

This is your Elegance with an adult pair of clowns in it. This Elegance is simply to small to survive long term in this situation.

This is one of my old Elegance corals with an adult pair of clowns in it. It survived the clowns but did much better after they were removed.

If your Elegance was much much much larger I would say you may have a chance of your Elegance surviving this relationship. I'm sorry, but everyone here in this thread is right. Your Elegance would get the bad end of this relationship.

 

[rcypert]

Heres the part that bothers me. I had an aleveopora. The exact same pair of clowns were hosting in it. Now this is a delicate coral similar to goniopora and it was small. The skeleton was like 4" tall and an inch wide. They never bothered it. Finally a Vlamingii tang ate the coral. My favorite piece. Plus I once worked with a marine biologist who told me back in the day they used to sell people elegance corals to host clowns because they were so hardy and anemones were not. Plus the only 2 people that have responded have told me that their elegance survived with the clowns hosting.
So I mean just based on evidence It seems like it would work. I dont want to risk this elegance coral and Im not going to let them host it.
To much of a risk with such a coral as an elegance. Thank you all for your input I very much appreciate it, even the negative that Im not sure if I agree with.