Female Ocellaris Lost Mate

[Rechelle Fleck]

My male Ocellaris died and had been paired with his female. My female Bubbles is very large, fat and agressive. I bought a smaller onyx perc that she initially took to for the first week but this morning was dragging him around the tank by the tail so I had to separate them. Until PetSmart opens where I can get a breeder box I have him in my large net at the top of the tank. The LFS I got him from is closed today so I plan bringing him back tomorrow to save his life. However, they did have a maroon that was about 3/4" smaller than her and I know that maroons can big jerks too. Therefore, I am wondering if I should try and pair her with the maroon as they would have a better chance of standing up against the big bad Bubbles .

 

[Lovemyreef2015]

I would not try and pair a Ocellaris with a Maroon. It will never work. I would get a small Ocellaris if you want to try.

 

[Rechelle Fleck]

I would not try and pair a Ocellaris with a Maroon. It will never work. I would get a small Ocellaris if you want to try.

Actually I know a breeder that does pair them successfully.

 

[Lovemyreef2015]

Who is the breeder, do you have a link? A breeder is not a hobbyist. Just trying to help you in trying to not loose a fish. Its up to you to take the advice given but IME it's not a good idea.

 

[Rechelle Fleck]

Who is the breeder, do you have a link? A breeder is not a hobbyist. Just trying to help you in trying to not loose a fish. Its up to you to take the advice given but IME it's not a good idea.

Yes, I understand. They are part of my reefing group on Facebook. If anything, Bubbles may just have to stay single

 

[Lovemyreef2015]

Depending on the age and size of the female it could be hard to pair again. It's always nice to see a bonded pair swimming around, sorry for the loss. Maybe try a smaller oscellaris and slowly introduce them.

 

[Rechelle Fleck]

Depending on the age and size of the female it could be hard to pair again. It's always nice to see a bonded pair swimming around, sorry for the loss. Maybe try a smaller oscellaris and slowly introduce them.

She's just under a year old and huge (for an Ocellaris). She's buddied up with my purple firefish, so it may just have to stay that way.

 

[Lovemyreef2015]

If you want I'd try an Ocellaris but if not I understand, always hated losing fish. I had a larger female maroon that was established with an anemone and was successful in introducing a smaller maroon. They ended up pairing but it was work. When we had a 125 years ago we had a large female and thought the tank would be big enough to have a different species clownfish and it ended horribly. Here's a pic of the maroons we had.

 

[HumuhumuFan]

I had the same problem when my smaller male ocellaris clown died. My female immediately started attacking the new one I bought. I tried to move the female to a different tank but at the time I had a small triggerfish in that tank and it immediately started to attack her.

After a day or two, it was apparent that wasn’t going to work so I moved her back to the original tank. This time she exhibited zero aggression towards the little new male. They have been together ever since. You may want to switch things around so she is the newcomer in her own tank.

 

[Rechelle Fleck]

I had the same problem when my smaller male ocellaris clown died. My female immediately started attacking the new one I bought. I tried to move the female to a different tank but at the time I had a small triggerfish in that tank and it immediately started to attack her.

After a day or two, it was apparent that wasn’t going to work so I moved her back to the original tank. This time she exhibited zero aggression towards the little new male. They have been together ever since. You may want to switch things around so she is the newcomer in her own tank.

That makes sense because I imagine that after being moved that she didn't see the old tank as her territory anymore. I am setting up a second 75 gallon tank, so maybe I'll try that. Sadly, she killed this male today. By the time I went to my LPS to get a breeder box, he was dead. She was incredibly vicious to him and was literally dragging him by the tail around the tank!

 

[HumuhumuFan]

That makes sense because I imagine that after being moved that she didn't see the old tank as her territory anymore. I am setting up a second 75 gallon tank, so maybe I'll try that. Sadly, she killed this male today. By the time I went to my LPS to get a breeder box, he was dead. She was incredibly vicious to him and was literally dragging him by the tail around the tank!

Sorry to hear that, always sucks losing a fish. I would give it a try, next time around though. Good luck!

 

[Jesterrace]

Actually I know a breeder that does pair them successfully.

I was just going to comment on that. The Blood Orange Occ produced by ORA is a mix between the two. That said, I would NOT attempt to pair them on my own.

https://secure.liveaquaria.com/prod...ive-bred-ora-reg?pcatid=3438&c=3352+3353+3438