rockstarwiggle Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 I have a clarkii clown. It is now at 3" and I got it when it was 1". It was picked on and so forth. Now it seems it is now the bully. I have a full tank, not too crowded IMO. I thought I was building an peaceful environment with a mandarin, lawnmower blenny, foxface, chromis, kole tang, lyretail, bangii and pajama cardinal. I wont say he is the dominant fish because he never picks on the kole tang, cardinals. The two or three he targets are the foxface,lyretail, and sometimes mandarin(he will wiggle above him). Now it is getting annoying and I am ready to part. He has a safe haven of an anemone and he is always the aggressor. They get feed regularly and no other fish seem to have issues. So do get rid of him.......or the ultimate question......will getting a fish to check the clownfish work??!?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neon Reefer Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 So 8 fish in a 65 G is not over crowded...Sometimes a simple re-arrangement of rocks will re set the environment but IMHO it may be time to part with it to regain the peaceful environment you desire. I would not try to add another fish! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockstarwiggle Posted April 21, 2015 Author Share Posted April 21, 2015 Thanks for the feedback. I am considering rearrangement for my corals to have more space but I will now have to do it. The clarkii clown fish is so awesome. He even bullies my hand when I reach in there. Scares me sometimes when I am not paying attention. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madsalt Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 My maroon clowns do the same thing. I do not think of it as them bullying the other fish. They never aggressively go after the other fish, they just defend their little piece of the tank. I look at it as part of the natural order of things 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockstarwiggle Posted April 21, 2015 Author Share Posted April 21, 2015 That is true. I just think that when the clown will dark across at the lyretail or foxface. But it won't touch the kole tang. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madsalt Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 There are certain fish that my maroons will leave the anemone to chase away and some they will not. The ones they will not chase away are my two tangs. They will go after my anthias. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neon Reefer Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 Probably are aware of that tail slap the Tangs have and are naturally adverse to mixing it up with them and risking injury Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timfish Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 And sometimes people just don't like each other. I have a Flame Angel in a tank that always gets into it with a 4" female balck and white Ocillarus but never picks on the two smaller males. You can try modifying it's behavior by spending some time aggresively chasing it or putting your hand against the tank and spreading your fingers when you see behavior you don't want but it can be a tedious process. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockstarwiggle Posted April 22, 2015 Author Share Posted April 22, 2015 Timfish- I'll give that behavior thing a try. I have from time to time when I am fiddling around I'll chase him when I see him nip at the foxface. I know these are all innate behaviors but were not in the wild anymore Clarkii!! Hehe.... I'll also plan some rock reconfiguring as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gig 'em @ NDstructible Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 Some species of clowns tend to become territorial over time, I've had clowns that attacked my hand anytime I put it near "their" territory. Those little buggers can really pack a punch!! I've tried Timfish's method and it has worked before, moving the rocks around so it looks like they are now in a new territory, or just moving the clown to a bigger tank. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockstarwiggle Posted April 22, 2015 Author Share Posted April 22, 2015 Bigger tank is always the solution!!! But that equals a usual wtf from the wife!! Haha!! Thanks Gig'em! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 Moving the rocks or changing the environment is a common practice with territorial cichlids, but I haven't had much luck with it in SW. The fish has a WTF moment and then goes back to what they were doing within the month. I would remove the clown. As far as clowns go, Maroon, Tomato and Cinnamon are the most aggressive. Clarkii come next and are known to pick on passive fish as it gets larger. That's not to say that other clowns cannot become aggressive. It's just that some fish are more prone to certain behavior than others. I've never been attacked by Oscellaris or Skunks. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockstarwiggle Posted April 22, 2015 Author Share Posted April 22, 2015 me clarkii clown!! or me clarkii clown!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mFrame Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 clarkii's are definitely one of the more aggressive clown breeds. I got rid of my original breeding pair because they were too mean/territorial whenever I would put my hand in the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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