Hi there! I’ve had some paired clowns since they were tiny juveniles. They spent every moment together since I brought them home and often slept nestled together under their mushrooms that they host.
It’s been about 6 months now since I got them and about 3 weeks ago they started fighting. Normal behaviour, so I let them work it out between them but after about 2 weeks, there was no clear victor as they are approximately the same size. At this point, I started noticing ripped fins and neither was letting the other eat so I
the one with the least ripped fins and set him in an in-tank jail out of sight from the other clown.
Everybody settled down and recovered from their injuries. I reintroduced them this morning and initially they both were excited and started rubbing on their mushrooms which then devolved back into charging and nipping behaviour. Mostly little mouth nips so I let that continue. Eventually, the clown who had been left out of jail started showing clear dominance. At one point I saw them exchange “shakes” and since then it seems like they’ve sorted out who’s on top.
Now the dominant one won’t let the other one join him back on the mushrooms and swims intimidatingly at them (not charging) if they get near them and will swim up and under them in a dominate manner while they’re trying to pick food out of the water column. I’ve attached a video of this behaviour: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/pnjn...7-AM.mov?rlkey=j3516m1adkat5ygz5990ym4e1&dl=0
I’m wondering if I should just let this play out and whether they’ll eventually start bonding again and hosting their mushrooms together again (rather, what’s the possibility they don’t pair up). They’re the only fish in the tank.
Thanks so much!
It’s been about 6 months now since I got them and about 3 weeks ago they started fighting. Normal behaviour, so I let them work it out between them but after about 2 weeks, there was no clear victor as they are approximately the same size. At this point, I started noticing ripped fins and neither was letting the other eat so I
the one with the least ripped fins and set him in an in-tank jail out of sight from the other clown.
Everybody settled down and recovered from their injuries. I reintroduced them this morning and initially they both were excited and started rubbing on their mushrooms which then devolved back into charging and nipping behaviour. Mostly little mouth nips so I let that continue. Eventually, the clown who had been left out of jail started showing clear dominance. At one point I saw them exchange “shakes” and since then it seems like they’ve sorted out who’s on top.
Now the dominant one won’t let the other one join him back on the mushrooms and swims intimidatingly at them (not charging) if they get near them and will swim up and under them in a dominate manner while they’re trying to pick food out of the water column. I’ve attached a video of this behaviour: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/pnjn...7-AM.mov?rlkey=j3516m1adkat5ygz5990ym4e1&dl=0
I’m wondering if I should just let this play out and whether they’ll eventually start bonding again and hosting their mushrooms together again (rather, what’s the possibility they don’t pair up). They’re the only fish in the tank.
Thanks so much!