Aggressive ocellaris

mike31154 · #1 04-01-2013, 03:51 PM

Guess I lucked in with my Maroons, so far anyway. Compared to what I've read with other hobbyists' experience regarding this species, mine are pretty mild mannered. The female has been in the tank (aquired as a juvenile) since shortly after start up (6 years ago or so) & the male was introduced shortly thereafter. They've been spawning for years & hosted in BTA. My hand has been in the tank quite a bit over the years cleaning out algae, so perhaps they're accustomed to it by now & don't see it as enough of a threat to bother, even with a clutch of eggs on the go. There is a limit of course, but I've never had the female actually bite yet. I know I'm getting too close when she starts 'posturing'. First sign is obvious irritation, tail wagging & 'working' the BTAs. I find that I can actually intimidate her & settle her down a bit by waving my hand in her direction, moving a bunch of water to show how much force my hand (perhaps fin in her eyes) can muster in moving water. This usually gets her to take cover in the BTA. I've seen this tail wagging to move water in a few different species as an apparent show of power.

Since I don't have a sump & generally do larger water changes less frequently, I'm in the tank with almost half the water gone about every 3 weeks. The fish pretty much hide out during this process & I think they know the routine by now too, so don't get all that stressed out. They're back to normal within a few minutes of the tank being refilled & the VorTechs back up & running.

As far as other livestock, generally no issues there. Co-inhabitants include Yellow Tang, Singapore Angelfish, Yellowtail Damsel, Mandarin Dragonet & assorted CUC critters. I used to have a Lawnmower Blenny that needed to speed up a little when transitioning past the Maroon's area near the center of the tank. If he hung too close to there, the female would take a feint at him. Never any harm done though. I've seen the female Maroon nudge a crab that was too close and she's also nudged the Dragonet on occasion when it ventured within cms of the spawn. That's all it ever is though, a gentle nudge, not a killing headbutt such as canadianbudz experienced with his clowns.

Always interesting to hear the different scenarios & how some folks' experience defies the generally accepted description of the 'standard' behaviour of certain species.

@ canadianbudz. You mention the 'home' of your clowns. Is it simply a certain territory or do they have a coral or anemone to call home. If they have nothing to be hosted in, perhaps they are more aggressive since they can't take shelter in an anemone??

canadianbudz604 · #2 04-01-2013, 05:43 PM

Mike, my clowns host a colony of variable star palys and blue mushrooms that are very close together. It's like a pit of death for the other critters in my tank. It's funny though because the clown gobys are allowed to go and sit right in the lair and don't even get chased. The cleaner shrimp is also allowed close, but he gets nudged out if he's in too far. I've thought of moving the mushrooms out of their but there is sponge attached to the rock they are on And I don't want to kill it or rip it off. Soon or a later I'm going to upgrade ao maybe the clowns will just own one corner of the tank. I was wanting to add another fish to my current tank maybe another aggressive damsel like a 4 stripe.

canadianbudz604 · #3 04-01-2013, 07:46 PM

Here is their home

mike31154 · #4 04-01-2013, 08:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by canadianbudz604

Mike, my clowns host a colony of variable star palys and blue mushrooms that are very close together. It's like a pit of death for the other critters in my tank. It's funny though because the clown gobys are allowed to go and sit right in the lair and don't even get chased. The cleaner shrimp is also allowed close, but he gets nudged out if he's in too far. I've thought of moving the mushrooms out of their but there is sponge attached to the rock they are on And I don't want to kill it or rip it off. Soon or a later I'm going to upgrade ao maybe the clowns will just own one corner of the tank. I was wanting to add another fish to my current tank maybe another aggressive damsel like a 4 stripe.

Ya, so my theory, whether it's valid or not, is that since they're not hosted by a stinging critter (anemone) that would protect them & kill intruders, they make up for it by being more aggressive? If they had the protection of an anemone, they may feel safer & there would be less requirement for aggression & chasing?

Just a thought. Only way to find out is add a nem & see if behaviour is affected.

On the other hand, maybe you just have a pair of bad a$$ clowns. Are they spawning at all?