Is it possible for a male clownfish to be larger than a female one in a pair?
I have kept clownfish for almost 20 years. The pair that I owned previously lived for more than 16 years, and exhibited extreme sexual dimorphism, where the female was more than twice the mass and bulk of the male in the pair.
The pictured black clown lived alone in a small tank for at least 3 months. It is my understanding that if a clown is alone, it will develop into a female. I felt some pity for the lonely black clown, so I mail-ordered another clown, with the instructions that a small one be sent. I was surprised to find that the new clown (the orange one in the picture) was larger than the black one!!
From my research, most aquarists state that placing 2 female clowns together is tantamount to killing one of them. I don't know if this fact is from their own observations, or from information passed from one aquarist to another.
Using caution and a plan for separation, I released the orange clown into the tank. I waited for the fireworks, and waited some more...6 months later, they're still together. There's a bit of posturing between the two, but they never swim more than 3 inches away from each other.
Additional Information:
A. They lived in a 12 gallon tank for 6 months.
B. They were moved to a 60 gallon tank yesterday, and are the only inhabitants.
C. The are captive-bred.
D. No anemones were provided as hosts.
Any observations, hypotheses, and/or theories are welcome.
I have kept clownfish for almost 20 years. The pair that I owned previously lived for more than 16 years, and exhibited extreme sexual dimorphism, where the female was more than twice the mass and bulk of the male in the pair.
The pictured black clown lived alone in a small tank for at least 3 months. It is my understanding that if a clown is alone, it will develop into a female. I felt some pity for the lonely black clown, so I mail-ordered another clown, with the instructions that a small one be sent. I was surprised to find that the new clown (the orange one in the picture) was larger than the black one!!
From my research, most aquarists state that placing 2 female clowns together is tantamount to killing one of them. I don't know if this fact is from their own observations, or from information passed from one aquarist to another.
Using caution and a plan for separation, I released the orange clown into the tank. I waited for the fireworks, and waited some more...6 months later, they're still together. There's a bit of posturing between the two, but they never swim more than 3 inches away from each other.
Additional Information:
A. They lived in a 12 gallon tank for 6 months.
B. They were moved to a 60 gallon tank yesterday, and are the only inhabitants.
C. The are captive-bred.
D. No anemones were provided as hosts.
Any observations, hypotheses, and/or theories are welcome.
