mateing clowns?

[bigdaddy234]

hey guys........... im a newb to this hobby....and i have 2 false clowns...i was just woundering what it means when the bigger one rips up to the smaller one, then the smaller one vibrates on the bigger one?...is it a mating thing?

 

[SuperNerd]

Yes, those "vibrations" were actually made famous by Marky Mark and the Fun Bunch and in Clown world mean that one clown is submitting to the more dominant one. You are most likely seeing the beginning of a bond. You aren't seeing a "mating thing" yet. That will come later my friend.

Btw exactly how bad is the bigger one "ripping" the other one?

 

[bigdaddy234]

Oh not that bad at all....they are usally together...ther friends i can tell..just somtimes he just scoots over to the other one and thats when the vibration thing happends...but thats cool that ther bonding

 

[bigdaddy234]

btw...how much later untill they will mate?

 

[SuperNerd]

How big are they and how long have you had them? It will take a little while. Not sure exactly when they start to lay eggs but it happens once they are both mature enough to do it.

I paired a couple of 1 inch "baby" true percs and it's been at least a year. They laid their first clutch about three weeks ago and just laid their second clutch two days ago.

 

[bigdaddy234]

cool!...do u have tons of little clowns runnign around your tank?

 

[SuperNerd]

Nope. I don't have any experience in clownfish breeding and have not tried raising any yet. The eggs just seem to disappear. Either something is eating them or they hatch after a week and and up getting eaten by my corals...which I think is unlikely because I would have seen them.

Check out this link if you're interested in actually raising them and look into the "My Clowns just laid eggs ... now what???" thread. Also look into rotifer and phytoplankton culturing techniques. I'm not sure exactly where the link is. Maybe someone will pipe in but if not I'll see if I can dig it out

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=282136

 

[SuperNerd]

Also check out "Clownfishes" by Joyce D. Wilkerson. Some say it's the bible of clownfish breeding.