Do You Keep Clownfish in Your SPS Displays?

[nickkohrn]

I have seen a growing number of SPS-only and SPS-dominated display tanks that don’t have clownfish. I understand that fish stocking is driven by personal preference, but I’m wondering why you have chosen to forego what is arguably one of the most iconic fish in the hobby.

I have a 70-gallon SPS-only display, and I’m going to be housing a single six-line wrasse for pest control, and maybe another fish that can hold its own against the wrasse. I’m trying to decide whether I want to add a pair of clownfish as well.

 

[Anirban]

Yup I do. He was the first inhabitant of my tank.

 

[homer1475]

I think you'll find 99% of reefers keep clowns of some sort. I would guess that in most tanks shots, they are hidden hosting some PH or the corner of the tank.

 

[PDR]

What’s the reasoning of keeping so few fish?

 

[Zohar78]

What’s the reasoning of keeping so few fish?

good question, and i was thinking the same thing, Was it WWC or BRS Tv, that was talking about fish waste being a solid source of food for corals.

 

[homer1475]

What’s the reasoning of keeping so few fish?

I don't understand this thinking either. It's been proven many times over the more fish you have, the healthier your corals are. Corals LOVE fish poop!

 

[PDR]

good question, and i was thinking the same thing, Was it WWC or BRS Tv, that was talking about fish waste being a solid source of food for corals.

Both ;)

 

[Journeyman]

I keep a pair of clowns and an rbta for them. I think they're fun to watch.

I also like to heavy stock my tank. Do in my 60g. I have 2 clowns, a melanarus wrasse, a mystery wrasse, pink streaked wrasse, Aurora goby and a starry blenny.

I just run a large skimmer and a refugium with chaeto and algae scrubber. Corals seem happy.

My lps and montis are growing like weeds. I have a bunch of acro frags that are encrusting and showing lots of pe.

If not for aggression, I would try to add more.

 

[nickkohrn]

What’s the reasoning of keeping so few fish?

good question, and i was thinking the same thing, Was it WWC or BRS Tv, that was talking about fish waste being a solid source of food for corals.

I don't understand this thinking either. It's been proven many times over the more fish you have, the healthier your corals are. Corals LOVE fish poop!

I want to keep only a couple of fish because I want to give them space. As you can see in the photo below, I have a minimal aquascape, which consists of a single bonsai structure for the corals, and two dens for shelter. I want the emphasis to be on the corals, so having fewer fish means that I can feed heavier, and feed more often, allowing the fish to have a healthy amount of mass without degrading water quality as quickly.

Since I want the emphasis to be on the corals, I want a six-line wrasse for a utilitarian fish (to control pests), and another fish to provide more movement. The fish that will be in with the wrasse will have to be able to hold its own against the wrasse, so something like a dottyback will be a good choice.

If I had more shelter for fish, then I would add more. However, I want what I add to be comfortable and not have to compete for such a basic necessity.

 

[DivingTheWorld]

As long as you realize that with only two fish, you'll need to dump a lot of chemicals into your tank to keep the sps healthy. I keep 11 fish (including a mated Picasso pair) in my 80 gallon sps dominant tank which maintains my phos/nitrate right where it should be (IMO). You might also want to be cautious with wrasses in a BB tank.

 

[MrObscura]

I have a mixed nano, which will be sps heavy and I have a davinci clown pair. They're my only fish

Since it's only a 10 and I needed to limit stock, I had to go with clowns. They're the quintessential saltwater fish.

 

[nickkohrn]

As long as you realize that with only two fish, you'll need to dump a lot of chemicals into your tank to keep the sps healthy. I keep 11 fish in my 80 gallon sps dominant tank which maintains my phos/nitrate right where it should be (IMO). You might also want to be cautious with wrasses in a BB tank.

I have no problem feeding heavily to keep nitrates and phosphates up. I have automatic feeder that I will be adding pellets to for feedings twice daily. I’ll also be feeding Reef-Roids every other day.

I should be fine with the six-line wrasse since they sleep in mucus cocoons rather than in the sand; the same goes for fairy and flasher wrasses.

I’ll definitely keep an eye on my parameters more intensely to monitor the health of the system.

 

[KrisReef]

I’d want to add something to eat algae if I only had 2 fish.

I think people with coral don’t want to worry about wandering or splitting nems crowding out the corals, and clown fish “need nems” unless you get a pair that will use an lps for home base.

I just added a nem and it headed straight for the corner where the wave maker was. I moved the machine and it’s stopped moving for now.
I like clowns and the nem was a gift and was to beautiful to turn down. I’m hoping it will propagate in the tank so this morph can be distributed around. If it keeps moving it’s going to disrupt my quiet tank. The clowns were hanging in some discosoma before the nem but moved right in 20 minutes after the polyp hit the seabed.

 

[mikenestle]

I’d want to add something to eat algae if I only had 2 fish.

I think people with coral don’t want to worry about wandering or splitting nems crowding out the corals, and clown fish “need nems” unless you get a pair that will use an lps for home base.

I just added a nem and it headed straight for the corner where the wave maker was. I moved the machine and it’s stopped moving for now.
I like clowns and the nem was a gift and was to beautiful to turn down. I’m hoping it will propagate in the tank so this morph can be distributed around. If it keeps moving it’s going to disrupt my quiet tank. The clowns were hanging in some discosoma before the nem but moved right in 20 minutes after the polyp hit the seabed.

Clownfish don't need a nem. Mine use a rock for their host. Some people buy a nem and the Clownfish don't want anything to do it.

 

[mattzang]

you could do some of the meaner clowns if you're worried about aggression, but clowns are pretty rough and tough themselves. my female ocellaris clown has been surprisingly rough on a newly added flame angel..

70 gallon tank with only 1-3 fish?! you crazy man! lol

 

[Skynyrd Fish]

Mines over 14 years old

 

[Skynyrd Fish]

Here he is.

 

[nickkohrn]

70 gallon tank with only 1-3 fish?! you crazy man! lol

Haha I know that it sounds crazy, and I’ll likely want more fish, but I’m going to try hard to keep it to a small number. I want the fish to have dedicated shelter areas, and how they determine that is up to them, but I want to ensure that my minimal aquascape doesn’t leave them without adequate retreats.

Also, I think that it does sound strange to have only a couple of fish in a 70g, but the tank is only 3’ (914mm) long, so it’s a little taller.

 

[nickkohrn]

Mines over 14 years old

That’s wonderful! Have you had it the entire time?

 

[Skynyrd Fish]

Yes i have.