Getting to know you...

[velvetelvis]

I went to ReefSMART yesterday and picked up a beautiful, locally propagated RBTA, which, I am thankful to say, seems to be settling in very well (it's even staying in the location I chose and carefully prepared for it, though I don't expect that to necessarily last!). My black ocellaris pair began investigating it this afternoon--the male initially showed more interest than his mate, which surprised me a little--and have just now started trying to get it to host them.

The female started out by biting at the tentacles. She was surprisingly rough, but only did this a few times. Both of them then made passes over the anemone--not surprisingly, the 'nem retracted its tentacles. It opened back up soon afterwards, though, and they've continued to leave for their accustomed territory behind the LR, then periodically come back, either together or singly, and briefly glide over the tentacles, barely touching them.

The male also returns on his own and undulates just above the anemone without seeming to touch it, while the female seems more inclined to "take charge" (as always!) and actually initiate contact with the tentacles. The BTA still doesn't quite seem to know how to take this attention (and it probably also doesn't help that the MH cut off about 20 minutes ago, so it's almost bedtime as far as the inverts are concerned), but I assume it's gradually adjusting. I can't wait it actually starts hosting them.

The clowns were being hosted by another RBTA at the LFS where I bought them (I didn't want to buy that particular 'nem, as it was wild-collected and cost about 8 times as much as the clone), so I was hoping that they would take to a new anemone. One of the things I find interesting is that although the male was the first of the pair to take notice of the anemone, he didn't make any real efforts to initiate hosting until his mate did. He also seems more interested than she is, as he's the one who returns to the anemone more often.

I really wish I had a decent camera, because this is a fascinating process to watch. There's something magical about the partnership between clownfishes and anemones, especially if you're watching it develop right in front of you.

 

[velvetelvis]

Update: The lights on the tank went out about an hour ago, and the male is snuggled into the deflated tentacles of the anemone (which I hope is deflated mainly because it's dark, not because it's stressed), and the female is on her own in their usual spot behind the LR. It's the first time I've ever seen them separated for any length of time. It will be interesting to see what state things are at by morning...I'm hoping that the anemone will get used to them quickly, and won't be driven to go wandering.

 

[sesheru95]

Yea, it is pretty cool. I just got a BTA a few days ago to have my paired clowns be hosted by it. They both seemed interested but the female took the first plunge and within a few hours the male was wanting to get in ( But the female didn't want him in lol ) but eventually a day later they were both playing and sleeping in it. I think it might of helped that I used the picture trick. Good luck!

 

[velvetelvis]

Thanks! All seems to be going well so far. The male is being hosted by the BTA regularly now, although he still leaves it periodically to join the female, who for some reason isn't showing as much interest yet. The nem is used to them by now--the male has taken to sleeping in it all night. I fed it a bit of thawed krill yesterday and it ate right away, so hopefully it will grow a bit so it can fit them both.

 

[sesheru95]

Interesting, I always thought that clowns hosting is more of a Monkey- see- monkey- do kind of thing that's why people used pictures of clowns hosting and that's why my male went in after my female.

 

[BonsaiNut]

Interesting, I always thought that clowns hosting is more of a Monkey- see- monkey- do kind of thing that's why people used pictures of clowns hosting and that's why my male went in after my female.

Nope. It is an instinct, which is why single clowns can be found in anemones in the wild - including some that are barely juveniles. For most clowns it is as simple as "get in an anemone or die" since they have limited natural defenses. Put differently, clowns are never found in the wild NOT in an anemone.

 

[velvetelvis]

Nope. It is an instinct, which is why single clowns can be found in anemones in the wild - including some that are barely juveniles. For most clowns it is as simple as "get in an anemone or die" since they have limited natural defenses. Put differently, clowns are never found in the wild NOT in an anemone.

I agree that this is totally instinct, since my clowns are CB and probably not F1, so the only times they've encountered anemones were in the LFS and now in my setup.

I do wonder why the male is the one who spends the most time in the anemone, even though they both were constantly snuggled up in one at the LFS. Maybe it takes a while? Or maybe the lack of competitors (aside from a totally inoffensive assessor who spends 95% of his time behind the LR anyway) and the comparative lack of foot traffic makes them feel safer...or maybe they're just gradually transferring home base from behind the LR, where they started out, to the anemone. In any case, it's interesting to watch.