My LFS seller was wrong about clownfish

[fatdaddy]

Hm, I thought a mated pair will often tolerate juvies on their anemone in the wild. These Juvies won't mature until one of the pair is lost and then only then they mature.

I would think in a 55, you'd see this same effect. Basically the adults will prevent the juvies from maturing.

 

[Slakker]

Unfortunately it doesn't work that way in captivity. Many have tried, and sooner or later it ends the same way.

And which one of us can say for sure that the dominant pair is never challenged in the wild? Perhaps juvenile clowns "challenge up" and are either killed or exiled.

In the wild it's nature. In the captive tank it's irresponsible.

 

[fatdaddy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13013721#post13013721 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Slakker
Unfortunately it doesn't work that way in captivity. Many have tried, and sooner or later it ends the same way.

Thanks for the post Slakker. Would it be different with an anemone? Reason I ask is that I was thinking of adding 5 babies to a 110 with a 12 inch H. magnifica. I thought I heard this is a good way to go, but it sounds like I'd need to split them up eventually.

 

[Slakker]

Without having first hand experience I can't say for sure.

I would think your odds of success are much greater in a 110 than in a 55. While abused clowns wouldn't really have an escape in a 110, they'd have some space to try to avoid aggressors.

Ocellaris are the best bet IMO, I believe Joyce Wilkerson had a "family" of ocellaris at one point and mentions it in her book, but I don't know/remember how long.

It can work out in rare cases, but for most people it doesn't have a happy ending.

 

[davocean]

IME having a nem actually seems to make them even more territorial/protective of nem area.
The only way I've seen multiple clowns successful other than gigantic tank was MOBERTS thread "27 clowns in same tank for 27 months" and that was because they were babies of mated pair.

 

[davocean]

In fact I was so impressed w/ MOBERTS tank I saved a couple pics;