lost a clownfish

[Wesdog]

So about 2 weeks ago my female ocellaris clown passed away leaving my Male all alone. Both were 9 years old, would it be to late to try to get him a new girlfriend or would he just kill any new addition because he's becoming the female of the tank?

 

[MombasaLionfish]

Try getting him a smaller male also what type of clown is he?

 

[Wesdog]

he's an ocellaris, I'm nervous about that because all the clowns my lfs has are way smaller so he may kill them. If I get one that's closer to his size it may be a female and I don't know how long it takes a Male start transitioning to female. just don't want to kill a bunch of clowns trying to get another pair.

 

[MombasaLionfish]

Well ocellaris aren't aggressive fish, but the big size difference worries me.

 

[Wesdog]

that's my main worry, my lfs does have a rather large ocellaris that isn't paired, so I know it's a female but I dont know how long it takes a clown to transition. I don't want to drop a big female in to have it kill my clown.

 

[MombasaLionfish]

Their might be an alternative. If you put you clown in a separate tank that's not the display tank then you add a larger female to the display tank and then add your original male

 

[Wesdog]

see but what if my current clown has already became a female, I'm just stuck between not wanting to kill my fish and not killing younger clowns trying to get my clown a new partner

 

[MombasaLionfish]

You'd know if your clown was a female he will act differently.
And the only way to know is to to try.

 

[MrObscura]

His clown is definitely female. It's the largest of a pair he's had for years.

Your best chance op is to get a small clown that's definitely not female and watch how they interact.

 

[MombasaLionfish]

I think since they're ocellaris they'll be fine.

 

[MarinaP]

2 weeks is not enough to transition. I would try the female from the shop asap.

 

[MombasaLionfish]

2 weeks is not enough to transition. I would try the female from the shop asap.

Yes.

 

[MombasaLionfish]

But watch them carefully.

 

[Wesdog]

thank you everyone for the replys and help, after getting the new female and adding her into the tank they seemed alright. Minor aggression but nothing that raised any concerns. Woke up this morning to the new female dead and what I feel was a smug look on my males face. I'm just going to let him live as a bachelor from now on

 

[MombasaLionfish]

thank you everyone for the replys and help, after getting the new female and adding her into the tank they seemed alright. Minor aggression but nothing that raised any concerns. Woke up this morning to the new female dead and what I feel was a smug look on my males face. I'm just going to let him live as a bachelor from now on

Well at least you tried.

 

[MarinaP]

I do not think your male is guilty. Stress is more like it.