Need help choosing clownfish

TAHK

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my tank is up and running. Everything seems to be going ok. I have two RBTAs now that are thriving.
Time to put in clownfish. I have two Ocellaris and they are doing well. My daughter REALLY wants black and white clowns. I had seen one at our local fish store that is just that - perfect black with white stripes. Sadly, it is not for sale. I was directed to the display with the juvenile that have orange faces. The salesperson told me that the faces would turn black as the fish matured.
My questions are: is the change in color of the face with age a true phenomenon, just a sales pitch?
Does anyone know where in Southern CA/San Diego area I would be able to buy mature black and white clownfish so I don’t have to sweat the maturation/color change process?
I think the correct name for this designer clownfish is a saddleback clown as opposed to black storm that have combination of black and white spots.
Any constructive advice is appreciated.
 

LgTas

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Hi there. My black and white clowns are a natural variety from Darwin, Australia. As juveniles they had the orange faces but these morphed to black as they matured.

I suspect the saddleback clowns are Amphiprion polymnus. Mine are A. ocellaris so may not be relevant for that species.
 

jamie1210

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my tank is up and running. Everything seems to be going ok. I have two RBTAs now that are thriving.
Time to put in clownfish. I have two Ocellaris and they are doing well. My daughter REALLY wants black and white clowns. I had seen one at our local fish store that is just that - perfect black with white stripes. Sadly, it is not for sale. I was directed to the display with the juvenile that have orange faces. The salesperson told me that the faces would turn black as the fish matured.
My questions are: is the change in color of the face with age a true phenomenon, just a sales pitch?
Does anyone know where in Southern CA/San Diego area I would be able to buy mature black and white clownfish so I don’t have to sweat the maturation/color change process?
I think the correct name for this designer clownfish is a saddleback clown as opposed to black storm that have combination of black and white spots.
Any constructive advice is appreciated.
How big is your tank? If you have 2 ocellaris that are doing well, NOT recommended to add in a 2nd pair of clowns. There will be aggression, fighitng over anemones/territories, etc. especially when all have paired up. If your tank is large enough with 1 BTA on one side, another on the other side, you might be able to get away with it. The goal is that 1 pair will use 1 BTA as a host, and the other pair will use the other BTA as the other host on the other end of the tank. If you want to give it a try, go for it, but just be ready to remove a pair so no one gets killed.

Saddlebacks and black/white occellaris are different species. As far as I know, there are no designer saddlebacks. B/W occellaris WILL darken with age. Designer clowns are typically non-normal pattern variants of True Perculas or Ocellaris clowns.

Hope this helps!
 
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TAHK

TAHK

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How big is your tank? If you have 2 ocellaris that are doing well, NOT recommended to add in a 2nd pair of clowns. There will be aggression, fighitng over anemones/territories, etc. especially when all have paired up. If your tank is large enough with 1 BTA on one side, another on the other side, you might be able to get away with it. The goal is that 1 pair will use 1 BTA as a host, and the other pair will use the other BTA as the other host on the other end of the tank. If you want to give it a try, go for it, but just be ready to remove a pair so no one gets killed.

Saddlebacks and black/white occellaris are different species. As far as I know, there are no designer saddlebacks. B/W occellaris WILL darken with age. Designer clowns are typically non-normal pattern variants of True Perculas or Ocellaris clowns.

Hope this helps!
Thank you. My tank is 260 gal with total water volume of 330 gal. I think the volume would be ok for two pairs, if I can keep them on opposite sides. In case one has to go it would be Ocellaris. Thank you for correcting my nomenclature. I think I am looking for true black and white Ocellaris.
 

jamie1210

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Thank you. My tank is 260 gal with total water volume of 330 gal. I think the volume would be ok for two pairs, if I can keep them on opposite sides. In case one has to go it would be Ocellaris. Thank you for correcting my nomenclature. I think I am looking for true black and white Ocellaris.
In a 260, I think it's definitely worth a try. I was throwing out the warning bc I've seen some reefers attempt 2 pairs of clowns in a 40, which didn't end well. But yeah, in that giant size tank,I think it's definitely possible.

For the B/W ocellaris, the young 'uns have a bit of orange on them--don't worry, they do darken over time! :)
 

D-Nak

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As previously mentioned, B/W ocellaris start out orange and white, and the black comes in as they mature. The last part to turn black is the face, but just keep in mind that on some occasions, the face never completely turns black so you have black and white clownfish with an orange nose.
 
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