Pairing clownfish

[DustyReefer]

I have a false perc that I've had now for about a year. I originally bought the clown as a pair, but the mate had what turned out to be a fatal birth defect that I didn't notice until after I purchased them.

So now fast forward to one year later I'm still yet to try and re-pair the clown with another. now my clown when purchased was very very small at about a half inch, and now is about 1 1/2 in long. My question is how big of a risk is it to add another hoping that they'll pair up? They have one at my lfs that I want that's about 1 in so I was hoping that would be the perfect match since it is smaller and more than likely a sub-adult. Also I'd like to add that my clown is very nice to all other fish and likes to swim around following my leopard wrasse. With the exception that it does like to bite me...

Another question I have is whether or not adding another clown would either calm my existing clown down, or would it only strengthen the aggression towards me?

 

[Dripley]

They normally just don't pair up. I was lucky, I purchased two clowns that out grew a nano tank. By doing so they were already mated. They never spawned in the nano tank but did in mine in less than a week.
My suggestion would be set up a small quarantine tank the smaller the better. But keep in mind the smaller the tank the quicker the water parameters will change. Put your clowns in it and wait for them to pair up. How would you know if they paired up? They will follow each other and will also feed together.

 

[justhaag]

what was the fatal birth defect? and can two clowns of different colors pair up? i have a orange and black occ clown in a 29 biocube and am hoping to pair them up.

 

[zoolover]

Get the 1" clown. Chances are its still a juvenile, so they should pair up pretty easily. And even if they don't right away, they might bicker for a little while back and forth but they'll figure it out on their own. I lost my male naked clown and my black and white male a few weeks ago (both jumped out of a tank within a couple days of each other) and replaced them both a couple days ago with small juvies, and they couldn't be happier. I think the size difference makes it a lot easier. Hope this helps.

 

[rssjsb]

Get the smallest ocellaris clown you can find. They're very easy to pair (I'm not sure what Dripley means - ocellaris like yours are among the easiest clowns to pair). Just keep an eye on them and be prepared to remove the little one if it's getting beaten up (like actual physical injuries, not just behavior). And it's always a good idea to have a cover on your tank.

 

[DustyReefer]

Thanks for the advice, I guess i'm going to have to pick up that clown now haha.