# Clowns...



## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

I think my two clowns have paired off and are doing some funkyass mating ritual by clearing out a spot in my sand. They keep going down into the front left corner and using this body shimmer to dig out the sand. It wouldnt be that big a deal...but I have a 2"-3" sand bed and my water has been a little cloudy for a week. Not from any spike or anything like that...but as salt guys know...sand has a lot of silt that just floats around. So they are about an inch from the base.

Maybe someone will know if these guys are trying to get to the bottom glass...that is what it looks like they are doing? I dont really have plans to breed these guys....it seems like nattereri and a pretty common fish to breed....but how is raising the fry?

So if they are paired....am I going to be dealing with this all the time?


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## His Majesty (Apr 5, 2005)

usally when clowns try to breed they want a flat clean surface to lay their eggs. so them trying to get to the glass makes sence. an easy way of counter acting this would to take a broken plant pot or a piece of slate and lay that under your LR. so its covered and its flat. they should go fo it.
in the wild they would prepare an area of fairly flat rock where their anemone is.

from what i understand raising the fry is an expensive and time consuming process. i did a quick google search and found this website.
LINK

if you dont want kids you could just let them get on with it and lay the eggs. if they are a sucess and hatch most of them will be sucked up the filter, eaten by parents and other fish. if your lucky 1 maybe 2 will survive.

thats as much as i know. maybe egir can shed some more light on this


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## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

I assume we are talking about tomato clowns... my percula clowns have never touched the sand.

I do however have a single tomato clown, with a trigger in my fuge, who digs non stop.

About the only thing you can do is get rid of them.


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## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

They are the false percula clowns. I might try putting a piece of clay pot in that corner...see if that stops them. Im not sure they can move that much sand to get to the glass...it is already 6" in the back corner where it seems the goby has decided to help them move it.

Thanks guys.


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## Wide_Eyed_Wanderer (Aug 22, 2006)

If they do mate your LFS would give you very nice store credit for the babies.


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## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

Grosse Gurke said:


> They are the *false percula* clowns. I might try putting a piece of clay pot in that corner...see if that stops them. Im not sure they can move that much sand to get to the glass...it is already 6" in the back corner where it seems the goby has decided to help them move it.
> 
> Thanks guys.


Really? weird.. mine have never touched the sand... my tomato clown thinks hes an excavator or something.

i think the clay pot idea is good... if they dont like it they will prob move it


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## assclown (Dec 12, 2005)

when i had clowns, they were never close to the bottom of the tank
you have some weird fish GG


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## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

Well they dont hang at the bottom...but they will take turns going to that corner and kind of shimmering. It would be like if they wanted to swim fast as hell....but they dont move actually move. They create a ton of current with their tail and body.....stiring up and displacing the sand.

Its kind of hard to describe...and I dont really know what they are trying to accomplish...but it sure looks like they are a pair and building a nest to breed.


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## redbellyman21 (Jun 27, 2004)

Grosse Gurke said:


> Well they dont hang at the bottom...but they will take turns going to that corner and kind of shimmering. It would be like if they wanted to swim fast as hell....but they dont move actually move. They create a ton of current with their tail and body.....stiring up and displacing the sand.
> 
> Its kind of hard to describe...and I dont really know what they are trying to accomplish...but it sure looks like they are a pair and building a nest to breed.


my 2 maroon clowns dug for a couple weeks.. technically clowns are paired as soon as you have 2 of them in a tank and they stop fighting... after they pair the female will grow an inch or more, and the male gets to stay the size he is and grow real real slow. I let them do there thing and they stopped all by themselves. They dont dig anymore... I cant seem to find the pics of them digging I had, but the clay pot idea should work, or put some rubble in their area... '


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## SirusX1721 (Oct 6, 2008)

My mated True Percs do this all the time. It's their little "dance" if you'd like to call it that. They have been spawning regularly every 16-20 days. They lay their eggs in a little clay pot or a small piece of ceramic tile. I don't have time for the eggs right now, so I just let the other fish "NUMNUMNUM" them up.
I wouldn't say they are trying to get to the bottom glass...for all they know that doesn't even exist! Mine dig up sand under rocks in order to make a cave-like appearance for them. Once I added the pot they stopped shortly after, and the eggs came.

Clowns are one of the easier fish to pair, but doesn't always work. They may co-exists, but don't always mate. They change sex depending on dominance when small. Once changed; that's it. Can be hard to re-pair after that if one dies off. Females are larger (x2) than males. Maroons are more difficult to pair off as females are rather aggressive, and if the other is too small she kills them usually (B!tch!!!).


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## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

Hey...thanks for the info. I dont think I want to breed them though....I read a How-too....and it looks like a huge PITA.


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## SirusX1721 (Oct 6, 2008)

It's definitely harder than raising little P's. Well I wouldn't say harder, but more time consuming. Even if you don't hatch the eggs or raise the little ones they're still pretty fish to care for.


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