Behavior of New Maroon and Gold Clownfish

[Matti]

Well I jumped in today and bought two new clownfish, one large one and another a bit smaller. The large one is really agressive and the smaller one is quite submissive. They have got to be doing some kind of "ice breaker", but because the temperature is 78 F, it can't be that! I am almost scared the male (I think she's a he now) is going to beat the smaller one up.

Would anyone with knowledge of these maroon and gold clownfish please help me with some advice, while I Google? Oh, and he ate like a pig!!

Thanks,
Matti

 

[yote]

Are you talking about a gold stripe maroon?If thats what you've got,their probably THE most aggressive of the clowns.
You'll think that their fighting,but they may actually be pairing up.

 

[kimoy]

maroon clown is not probably the most agressive clown fish It is the MOST AGRESSIVE clown fish. :)

 

[reeffreak]

Maroons are aggressive and do not pair up easily.You have a good chance of the larger killing the smaller.When it comes to Maroon clownfish,its better to buy only one or as a mated pair.

 

[Bifferwine]

The bigger one is the female. Unless there is a REALLY big size difference, they are not likely to get along. The closer in size they are, the tougher they will fight for dominance.

 

[Matti]

Thank you all!! Why do the @#$% store owners insist that, "Oh, yes, they will be perfect together!" They saw a dummy walking right in their store. I did read on and all of you are right. The big one is the Mama--maybe I'll name her Medea, one of my favorite of Tyler Perry's characters--and the smaller one, who is smaller, but who is not dwarfed by her, trembled in her presence for the first couple of hours. I am really lucky this happened because, on one website, which talked on endlessly about maroon and golds, said, if that happens, then they are actually pairing up. (The 2 fish were not in the same tank at the store). And it is not often, in fact, that these guys will pair up. The big one plays "Grit Ball" until the other is floating at the top (reference is Medea's Family Reunion).

Today, happily, I can report that they are swimming very nicely together. She'll let him do his thing, but he seems never to be too far away. I almost feel guilty.

I think an anemone will help. What do you think. Too soon? Later, now?

I also got 2 little corals: a star polyp and an orange button(?), 3 snails, and 4 small hermit crabs.

Any suggestions would be appreciated!!

Matti

 

[Matti]

Wanna know how to calm down an agressive maroon and gold clown fish? Give her a wooby: an anemone. Oh she is a different fish all together; she snuggles with the anemone, cleans it, feeds it; and, she's even letting her part-time boyfriend (the small male maroon and gold) have a share too! Best $65 I ever spent, but then I had to buy all of its food, and $125 later and a silent, "Ugg", I was out of there. I am just glad all three of us are still alive!!

Hope you are all having a great weekend!
Matti

 

[UnderwaterWorld]

do not get an anenome!

They are bad for new tanks(because they can't take the flucuations), small tanks(same reason, and if it dies it pollutes the small volume of water badly, I know from past experience), and tanks without sufficient lighting.

I think urs falls into all these categories too. It will die, and kill everything you have most likely.

What lighting do you have? You should wait 6-8 months before you get an anenoms really. What kind is it?

What food did you buy? That sounds expensive!!!

 

[fishbait]

i'm sure you hate to hear all the bad news, but UWW is right. a young 12 gallon is no place for a anemone. that does sound pretty expensive for a anemone. bubble tips normally run 20 to 30 bucks around here. what kind of food did he sell you? 60 bucks is extremely expensive for food also. all they need is un-cooked table shrimp or silversides. both are normally around 5 bucks for a package.

 

[reefer2b]

I was thinking that was a lot for food. But, since I'm no where near ready to buy one I didn't know for sure

 

[Oscarsdad608]

way to early for an anemone. I hope you have good lighting and water quality or you will have a mess on your hands. They really get foul when they die too.

 

[yote]

For 65 bucks,I hope you had to make 3 or 4 trips to get it all home.

 

[Bifferwine]

Definitely a no go on the anemone. They rarely survive in tanks that are younger than 10 months old. And a 12 gallon tank is waaaaay too small, since they require pristine water conditions and established parameters. Also, about the food, they don't eat anything special; there's no way that food should have cost you that much.