Can you pair different types of clownfish.

[ZachDemitro]

I was curious if I could pair two different clownfish types for instance a Naked ocellaris (Amphiprion ocellaris) and a Goldxlightning maroon clownfish (Premnas biaculeatus) at the very least even if they don't lay eggs would they at the very least live together in peace? And not just these clowns but any clown would they work together or share a space? I've seen stores with like dozens of clownfish together so I'm not sure how pairing and how many in a tank actually goes..

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

I was curious if I could pair two different clownfish types for instance a Naked ocellaris (Amphiprion ocellaris) and a Goldxlightning maroon clownfish (Premnas biaculeatus) at the very least even if they don't lay eggs would they at the very least live together in peace? And not just these clowns but any clown would they work together or share a space? I've seen stores with like dozens of clownfish together so I'm not sure how pairing and how many in a tank actually goes..

I would be leery of trying to pair up a maroon clown with another species, they are pretty aggressive.

Color varieties of the same species can be paired up, as can related species (like ocellaris and percula, or the different skunk clowns).

Pairing of clowns is never a sure thing, so you always need to have a "plan B".

The stores that house a number of clowns together get away with it for the short term due to crowding the fish. This spreads any aggression out over the group of fish, so that at least for the short term, no single fish gets beat up too badly.