clowns & mandarins

[Timbits]

Originally Posted by rusty shackleford

just wondering if a pair of clowns would get along with my two mandarins

-would a pair of clowns be more aggressive together vs a single clown?
-witch clowns are the least aggressive?
-best anemone for them?

i feed my mandarins frozen food, would a clown (or pair) beat on them and steal there food?

tanks 48 gallons , 4' long

1. Most likely yes, 2 clowns together would mean that they can pair up and become a male and a female, in that case they will have to go thru the process of deciding who gets to be who. and after they are paired up they may mature fast and start reproducing. when they get to this stage they get pretty aggressive and fight off any fish that comes near their "spot"

2. Percula clowns like nemo would be the least aggressive

3. best anemone i would have to say would be the bubble tip anemone. Almost every clown will host that in captivity from experience.

To answer your question though, I think you will be fine. They wont be that aggressive towards the mandarin esp in a tank that size. But they are aggressive feeders so they could take all the food before your mandarin gets any. i would try to spot feed the mandarin to make sure he gets enough. hope this helps.

[rusty shackleford]

deffinatly helpful and exactly what i was hoping, i have to turn pumps off to feed and usually have to vac up uneaten food so hopefully clowns will eat up whats left over. (vaccuming up food, straining then rinsing every thing a couple times a day is a PITA

thanks

[Timbits]

no problem buddy, glad that helped

[dc4]

Everything in my tank, including my pair of clowns, completely ignore my pair of mandarins. Its like they are invisible to everyone and just go about their business hunting pods.

[mike31154]

My Mandarin is fine with a mated pair of Maroon Clownfish in the system. I had two male Mandarins for a while & even that kind of worked, but not long term so I passed the little Mandarin on to another hobbyist. Once in a while the Mandarin will get a little close to the Maroons' clutch of eggs & the female will give him a little nudge, but that's about it. I believe Mandarins have some sort of coating that is very distasteful, so most other fish leave them alone after the first encounter.

You shouldn't have a problem. Feeding might be the only thing. Many Mandarins will not take any kind of prepared food & risk starvation in a system without sufficient pod population. It's a bonus that yours are trained to take prepared food.

[BlueWorldAquatic]

I have 2 darwins with a male mandarin (eating pellets) in my 10gal without problems.

And they are breeding clows too, so they should be aggressive, but they leave him alone. Even near the eggs

[Flash]

Originally Posted by BlueWorldAquatic

I have 2 darwins with a male mandarin (eating pellets) in my 10gal without problems.

And they are breeding clows too, so they should be aggressive, but they leave him alone. Even near the eggs

i've seen this... it's true... and quite amazing to watch! lol! still trying to find a way to steal ken's darwins

[rusty shackleford]

i think all mandarins eat frozen food, if the other fish would give them a chance.

my pair were the only fish in my tank and within a week of getting them they were already eating frozen food.

now when i put the syringe of food in the tank to thaw the male will actually come up to the top to suck food right out of it.