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View Full Version : Question about my silly clown fish?


Lovemyocean
05-08-2015, 08:55 PM
So I have two clowns paired clowns that were given to me and hosting a leather coral. I had two smaller clowns already and one didn't make it. So I have 3 altogether now.
Here's the odd thing. The two biggest ones at first were super territorial of there leather but now they seem to have accepted the smallest one as one of there own. And he is just loving it. (See photo) The smallest one seems to never leave it besides for food.
It almost looks like they have chanced mates. Is that possible?
Or are they just sharing they leather now that there is only 3 of them?

Lovemyocean
05-08-2015, 08:58 PM
Another shot. I hope it works

gobytron
05-08-2015, 10:08 PM
chanced mates.?

it is not unusual for a female to mate with a dominant male and accept a beta male to keep around as a back up as well.

Lovemyocean
05-08-2015, 11:07 PM
Oh ok. Maybe that's why he's aloud in the leather now. Maybe he's a back up mate.

RDNanoGuy
05-09-2015, 02:38 AM
Female clowns maintain a harem of males in the wild, sometimes as many as five males per female. Clownfish are also hermaphrodites, if the female dies the largest male in the group will take over and change sex.

Myka
05-09-2015, 03:09 AM
It would be unusual for a trio of Ocellaris to get along long-term in a typically-sized reef tank. Clownfish from the Skunk Complex are more likely to do this. I don't think this trio will work out for you long-term. One will probably get booted, and will have to be removed because of aggression. It's not unusual for a young pair to split and bond with a different fish, they aren't really a "pair" until they've been together for quite awhile. IME, some Clownfish will never form a bond to another Clownfish as bizarre as that sounds.