Will all clowns host?

[fluidimagery]

I got into reefing 2 years ago when my now wife wanted a Nemo... so we picked up a tank raised False Perc after about a year I got him a friend... a much smaller tank raised False Perc.

I don't believe they have completely paired yet as sometimes they're on different sides of the tank seperated from each other. There is still occasional aggression but the spouts are few and far between.

I've never owned an anemone because my tanks have always been to small to keep one in a healthy environment. However, I've never seen either of my clowns attempt to host anything. My current 25g has a big 10" toadstool leather, tons of xenia, a torch coral etc. I would think those are all "anemone like" for the clown so they'd be drawn to it more.

I'm now in the process of upgrading my tank to 100g (36 x 30 x 20) and the clowns are going to be in there doing their thing. I'd love to take a stab at keeping an easier anemone (RBTA?) and having the clowns host it. Am I wasting my time with attempting that since they've never hosted anything, or is there a good chance they will?

 

[speedo2wet]

Answer: No
Actually all the Nemo's that you purchase are farm raised so they never "learned" what an anemone actually is. This is not something that is in their nature, it is a learned process from the parents.

I do have a solution in which I have not tried yet but can work if someone is willing to try. Since I will be doing once my reefis up to holding fish.

Go out and buy a tupperware or ziplock container with a lid that is big enough to house the anemone and the two clowns. I would also think that if you did it with one clown the other would eventually follow. So chosing to teach one or two is up to you.

drill as many holes through out the entire tupperware as you possible can so you will have good water flow through it and it would seem as if the tupperware was never there.

Place the anemone and clowns in the tupperware and place the lid on it and I would do it so the lid was on the bottom and place it in the tank. now over time the clowns should "learn" that the anemone is a friend and will adapt to it.


If you decide to try this let me know how it works out.

 

[illcssd]

Speedo2wet:
What evidence do you have when you say that hosting is not in they're nature?
I have 2 captive bred clowns, That had never ever seen an anemone before in they're life, within 30 seconds of adding my magnifica in the tank they were being hosted by it.... Lucky guess? I think not.
fluidimagery: Imho i think clowns have the nature to host built into they're brains or something. in time almost all clowns with host an anemone in the same tank, natural host or not.

 

[Teremei]

I also have 2 tank hatched clowns, 2 yrs old now. False percula. And they both hosted my new RBTA tonite, it's first night in.

 

[JamesJR]

Speedo, not to be rude, you are very wrong for several reasons. First consider how clowns breed, the eggs are watched then they hatch. Once that happens the parents are completely out of the picture yet the baby clowns still manage to find their way to the anemones. Second, I have seen clowns that I have personally bred and raised take to anemones.
also, every single species of clownfish lives in anemones in the wild and you will never see them without anemones close by.
Also, your idea of mixing the clowns in a tupperware container is not only cruel but is totally ridiculous. These clowns don't want to go into the anemone so why force them? Also, if they aren't going into it then chances are the anemone is stinging them. Why are you trying to tell someone a method that you say works when you obviously haven't even tried it yourself?
Fluidimagery, you sound like you are on the right track. What type of clowns do you have? If you have had success with these species of soft corals I see no reason why you couldn't keep a RBTA either. There is no guarantee that the clowns will go into this type of anemone, but the odds are better that they will go into the anemone than your softcorals. Give it time and eventually they may learn to.

 

[gotboostedvr6]

could take alittle while but mine hosted I was pretty excited took about a month

 

[speedo2wet]

Not to burst your bubble but I have talked to two tank breeders of clowns and this is the advice he has given every one of his customers and they have all had success with this method.

On the other fact if you were born in a tank with about a hundered other would you know what an anenome was if you say it for the first time?? Thants my point. Now my buddie has placed two tank breed clown in his reef along with an anenome and neither of them will go near the anenome.

Now my my opinion in placing in a tupperware is as you can see theororetically speaking and why should it not work. Many fish are placed in tupperware continers in LFS.

 

[Bmgrocks]

well, im new to the salt water fish keeping scene, and based upon my research, and in reading this article in Tropical Fish Hobbiest on Clowns and Anmeone's

The Janurary 2005 Article
The Reefer
Clownfishes and their hosts.

"When placed in a reef aquarium that doesnt house an appropriate host anemone or one that is close enough, clowns willl take up residence in (or on top of) a variety of other critters, including quite a few corals."

"I think this behavior shows how much they want a host of some sort when something is available, as manyof these substitute hosts certainly offer no sort of protection of the guest. The behavior is definitely hard-wired geneticially, and he result of this can be quite suprsiing".

its apparent that their is a desire to host, perhaps as seen in fluidimagery's tank, they just haven't found anything that they really like,

to say that They haven't learned how to host!

Hosting is pure instinct, its what makes a clown a clown,

just like a dog going after a squirrel, it is hard wired, its a natrual prey drive,

now, through breeding we can selectively supress such instincts but they willl always be present, the desire to host may not be as strong as a wild counterpart, but to say they don't know how is ridiculous.

Speedo
I believe that your statement is wrong, and that you are making false claims to someone who is displaying the desire to learn what is best for their tank

FluidImagery, your doing just fine, keep doing what your doing, and i believe that eventually you TANK BRED..speedo...clownfishes will Eventually HOST in something that they like

To possibly increase the chances of them hosting, false perc's natrually in the WILD, (where our HARD WIRED stock origionated from)...speedo..

Host Naturally in these Anemones

Carpet anemones
to be specific S. Haddoni

and the bubble tip anemone.
Do note that the percula, false percula and A. Leucokranos (white bonnet clowns) are not found with this anemone in the wild, but never the less, i don't ever Ever recall seeing them refuse to live with a bubble tip in an aquarium..

best of luck to you Fluid, keep doing what your doin and give it time. Happy Holidays

 

[JamesJR]

Speedo, I'm not going to argue with you. I've bred clownfish myself and kept them for over a decade. You can think whatever you like.

 

[MountainReef]

Do clowns need to be any certain size or maturity before they will want to host?

I am a dive instructor and have never seen an anemone hosting fry. In fact I can't recall ever seeing young fish hosting in the wild.

 

[Bmgrocks]

I heard that they usually host at the beginning of their juvie stage,

captives- when they hit the 1" mark, but like people they are individuals, and host when they are ready

as far as in the wild,i don't know too much about that, but perhaps they do at such a young age, they need the protection from predators. So i assume they always keep out of sight.

 

[sarahkucera]

I've got two percs, no idea if they were wild caught or tank bred. They never had an anemone before I got the tank. Now they have three nems to choose from and they still choose the overflows.
Going on five months or so of having nems in the tank and still not a whisper of interest.
I'm thinking of putting this pair into my 20-something gallon small tank I'm setting up and putting some other clowns in the big tank to host my giant H Crispa.
So basically, there's no guarantee that they will host a nem and you really can't force them to either.