How old is old?

[Scubalife]

I have a pair of clown fish, which seem to be making some mating gesturers. How old do clown fish need to be before they cam breed?

 

[Mike31154]

Both my Maroon clowns were juveniles when purchased, about six months apart. Went through the harrowing pairing experience & once that was sorted out, the original clown becoming dominant, it (she) put on a rapid growth spurt. Doubled in size in a matter of a couple of months. After that it took about two years until the first spawning event.

Not sure how much variance there may be in this time line for other species of clownfish, but seems like yours are already paired, so you've got that part aced. May also depend on other factors such as water parameters & surroundings. Mine have always had a BTA to host them, but I'm not sure that will speed up the spawning process. Many breeders simply provide an empty terra cotta flower pot for their clowns to breed in & it seems to work fine.

 

[Scubalife]

Ya my semi snowflakes are only about a year old, so I'm guessing they might need some time before they start breeding. They both host a BTA, I've never heard that it will hasten their breeding but I've heard that it helps with the growth rate of the BTA. Have you heard the same thing?

Also how do you find your maroon clown fish with their BTA? I've seen on several occasions that they can be quite aggressive and territorial, even the fingers in the tank. I'm starting a sister tank and I'm looking into getting a maroon clown for it. You just can't beat the deep red color you get off them!

 

[elegance coral]

With lots of good food, and a calm and clean environment, they can spawn in about a year and a half. That's from birth. If you buy small clowns, they're probably somewhere around six months old. You'll typically have to care for them for about a year before their first spawn. This is true of the smaller species like percula and ocellaris. It may take longer for the larger clowns, like maroons???????

 

[Conrad25]

I think it varies. Mine have a really good balance of food as they get just about everything you can think of. My 2 origional clowns started bickering and I got rid of the large one and put a new male small in size. They started mating 8 months after that and have laid clutches every 2 weeks ever since.

 

[deangelr]

It can take from 9months (for occy's) to several years depending on species, environment and the individual fish.. I have a pair approaching the 3 year mark with no breeding.. They have been doing the whole cleaning surfaces thing for a couple of years now..

 

[deangelr]

I think 5 yrs old is a good mature age for a clownfish where you would expect them to be breeding... They can live for 20-30 years (at least in captivity) after all

 

[Scubalife]

Wow 5 years that's crazy! We'll see what happens I guess

 

[furfeet26]

i've had my clowns for a year or so, the person i bought them from had them for about the same amount of time, but they dont even clean... lol

 

[charleneatkins]

its so cute when they start to turn back the sheets:lol2: