Could this be possible?

[Fishfreak218]

OK,
well i have had the same Occ. clown for about 6-7 months and i recently got a new large-er black occ. clown.. they were in the tank and fighting (not bad fighting.. more like the lrg. black occ. was chasing the smaller one away).. so i seperated them.. (in the same tank though.. they could still see eachother) for about 3 days... then today i took the seperater out and it looks kinda like the small orange occ. clown is being submisive.. i havnt seen them "lip lock" yet so could it be possible that my orange clown is still male and didnt turn female???? he hasnt grown much at all since i got him 6-7 months ago....
TIA
-josh
P.S. is their certain signs i should look fot if they were 2 females

 

[dantodd]

It is possible, especially if you are fairly certain that it was non-differentiated when you got it.

They will not stop fighting if they are both female. Keep an eye on them and if they settle into any sort of non-combat relationship they are not both females.

I have heard reports of female clarkii co-existing without killing each other but only when there is a sexually mature male with them.

 

[Fishfreak218]

hmm... ok.. i dont want to loose my original one to stress b.c. he has alot of centimental value [sp] ...... how long should i wate to see for them to settledown??

 

[dantodd]

it depends on how much you are willing to risk of your smaller clown. Most folks recommend waiting until there is a fairly significant damage to one of the clowns. If it is only a bit of chasing and/or fin nipping the fish can put up with quite a bit of that. Once you start seeing bleeding I'd go ahead and separate them. If they are lip locking I'd think that's a good indication you'll not get a pair.

Also, look for stress in the "losing" fish. If it is not swimming well, breathing heavily etc. that's another good indicatin you have to separate them.

 

[Fishfreak218]

thank you VERY much.... ill give you guys an update w/ pics later (that is if they pair up :crosses fingers: )

 

[Fishfreak218]

it seems as though the black occ. has calmed down.. and their is ALOT less chasing... we shall see...

 

[Fishfreak218]

EDIT:
now he seems to be slanted when the other LRg. Occ. charges at him.. is he showing his belly as a sign of submission, ya think???

 

[dantodd]

A good sign. He will most likely start to shimmy or shake when she charges him. Then she'll start stopping short of actually hitting him.

Be sure to read the FAQ on clownfish pairing at the top of this forum for a lot of good reading about this.