clownfish question

[isaacharry]

I know this is a stupid question... but is there really a difference between a picasso "pair" and just buying two picassos randomly?

[RIP Sebastian]

I'm still new to reefing, but I'll answer. The others will correct me if I'm wrong. I'll start with some background info on clowns.

 

THERE IS NO STUPID QUESTION! Marine fish are odd since so many are hermaphrodites. You should've seen some of the dumb questions I asked-and occasionally still do!

 

When clowns are born, they are gender neutral-they aren't male or female. In a harem (large group of clownfish) the most dominant fish becomes a female. The second most dominant fish becomes a male. Then a pecking order is established among the remaining gender neutral fish.

 

That way, if the female dies, the male becomes the female, and the most dominant gender neutral becomes the male.

 

Note that for clownfish, changing gender is a one-way street. Once they become male or female, the fish cannot return to its gender neutral state.

 

When kept without any other clownfish, a clown may choose to change into a female. It's not guaranteed to happen, but it's a common occurrence. My Onyx Percula has begun her transition.

 

Sexing clownfish is relatively easy. If there is a clownfish that is 6 months old and has been kept without any other clowns, it's probably a female. If you have 2 clowns, the larger one is the female. Males typically don't get larger than 1.5 inches. Females have been known to grow to greater than 4 inches. In a harem, the male is the second largest. The rest are gender neutral.

 

THE FEMALES WILL BITE. They're very protective of their territory. When they bite, lightly flick them. It'll stop them.

 

You're probably thinking "Get On With It!!" but I honestly just wanted to help. I'll answer your question now.

 

A pair of clownfish means that one is a male and one is a female-the male has submitted to the female, which means he's accepted that she's dominant. The male does this little submission dance thingy where he rolls over on his side and wiggles around like he's having a seizure. He's just saying that he's not man enough to be the gal.

 

If you just buy 2 clowns, one has not submitted to the other. One may be a female, they both might be gender neutral, or they could be males. If you accidentally place 2 females in the same tank, THEY WILL KILL EACH OTHER. They both want to be dominant, but they can't change their genders, since they're both females. With 2 clowns, you may want to buy hem from the same store. I'd take the two smallest ones so that the hierarchy of clowns at the store doesn't get too scrambled. But with the two smallest clowns there will be less violence since one will already more dominant than the other. They will fight though. They may only fight for a day, or for 2 months. It's different each time.

 

So the difference is that a pair of clowns has one male and one female, while 2 clowns could be male, female, or neutral. Also, with 2 clowns, one hasn't submitted to the other. Plus, pair are much more expensive.

 

Please note that a pair is not necessarily a MATED pair. A pair just means one has submitted to the other-there's one male and one female. They haven't spawned yet. A mated pair will probably run you about 300 bucks. A pair could run you anywhere from 75-150. Single clowns could be 15-30. I'm no clown expert, so if you want to learn about breeding clowns, PM Pickle, or read her thread. Two good sites that I learned a lot from before I got my Perc was occelarisclownfish.com and breedclownfish.com

 

Hope this helped,

Nick

[fishfreak0114]

RIP Sebastian's explanation was very good. Pretty much, it's cheaper to buy 2 clowns because they aren't paired, and just get them both small or one larger than the other. I did that with clowns that were the same size and one submitted before I even got to put them in the tank lol. Buying a pair of clowns guarantees that you get a male and a female, but it is more expensive.