Aggressive Clownfish

[Cody000125]

Hi All!

I've never had any fish aggression in my tank before, but recently my female clown has been very protective of the spot where my clownfish pair sleep. Which of course out of all the coral they could host, they choose a random patch of zoas directly in the middle of the tank. My female clown is fine with all fish in the tank other than my melanurus wrasse, she storms at them whenever they come near. They don't bite or attack each other and the wrasse doesn't seem bothered at all, but my clown has a few either bite marks or scratch marks along with a torn fin I'm worried about. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to fix this? Or how to change which coral they're hosting lol? Thanks

 

[Peace River]

Please know that this is part of the mystery and magic of clownfish. The aggression and dominance is wired into them and, specifically, that is how she become a female. Clownfish will fixate on certain things from time to time whether it be a fish, coral, or even a rock. Sometimes a temporary or permanent rearrangement of the aquascape can cause a diversion/distraction, but there is no guaranteed. As far as what host they pick, other than moving/removing the object, then they will be clownfish. I have found that it is better to lean in and be amused and amazed by their antics instead of being annoyed by them. Unless there is an infection the fins and surface wounds will heal.

 

[Tahoe61]

You can't change the nature of clowns. They are territorial, and aggressive. The corals or heater or rock they decide to reside in is up to the clowns.
You can disrupt the behavior by moving the scape around, but that's temporary relief.

 

[Borat]

They are arsehole fish - get rid of them and job done!

 

[exnisstech]

What size tank? I've kept clowns in larger community tanks without issues. The other fish just stayed out of the clowns area, especially when they were guarding eggs .

 

[Cody000125]

What size tank? I've kept clowns in larger community tanks without issues. The other fish just stayed out of the clowns area, especially when they were guarding eggs .

It's a 100g, and yeah, they've never had any issues swimming together until a few days ago. I'll keep an eye on them, though, hopefully it'll fade.

 

[fish_collector]

How do you stop clown aggression? Remove the clown.

 

[winxp_man]

Wait till you get a Devils Spawn! AkA Maroon Clown! Then you shall see evil!