damsel quesion revisited

[loopy]

there was a thread about damsels...and their nastiness. Well, about that....we have a blue damsel and a clown, added a dominoe damsel and one of the others practically ripped him to shreds in one night, and I had even done some rearranging and all that stuff that is suggested. Moved him to the qt tank. When we get another fish, if it gets picked on I will have to figure out who's doing the rippin, and it will have to go back to the fs. No naughty behavior in my tank.:nope: I have a feeling it is the clown, that thing has even bitten me. So whom ever was asking if they remained peaceful, I would now say no.
anyone have any advice, suggestions.......go for it...I am still new at this....but not liken damsels very much right now.:happyfish :happyfish

 

[mjmpinsky]

Unfortunately, your thoughts are correct.....it probaby is the Clownfish.
I have 3 damsels in my tank. It USED to be four. My Clarkii has gotten quite large and is the definite King of the tank! I am sure it is the cause of the loss of my 4-Stripe and Green Chromis by the bite ratio on the deceased fish.
With increased hiding places added to my tank, I have had no further losses. But.,...the Clarkii still chases anyone who comes near him or his anemone!
(I have heard that Tomatoes are even nastier!)

 

[loopy]

I am almost sure it's the clown as he bites me, the damsel nudges me, but not a true bite, the clown really bites....the butt head. I can trade him in for another fish, and if he is going to destroy every fish I get......I will, but he is fun to watch and I like him, but it's not worth making other fish suffer, and having 2 fish in a 55, heck...that's no fun. We'll have to see how it goes. I always have the qt tank available if he gets nasty and I need to 'store' him in an emergency. The little domino is in there all alone now, should put the clown in there and put domino in main tank....it's like he's being punished for a crime some one else committed. OH GOD.........now I am acting like my fish have feelings. Ya think they do.......na. Hmmm I dunno.:thinking:

me thinks I am loosin me mind....yep:scared:

 

[mary]

Think that is a big mistake. Clarkii Clowns are finicky but if they have their anemone or have adopted a soft coral as mine have, they do do a lot of chasing others but they have never harmed a fish. Just when they spawn they really {especially the male} gets very protective of the female and aggressive toward anything going for their spaghetti coral. They live in it and spawn on the rock next to it. I did almost sell the pair but in finding out they were spawning, did not. Things have calmed down. The female has bitten me and at the same time she has eaten from my fingers, pieces of shrimp. It is just who they are. I get more enjoyment from their intelligent behavior than any other fish. They are adorible. The most aggressive fish in my tank now is the yellow tailed damsel amd the clowns keep it in its place. It does attack the red wrasse which is a concern, has not damaged it at all, but it will get bigger. As aggressive as my clowns seem they never really bite a fish. That domino is the danger, if you want a more peaceful tank, forget it. Be wary of territorial fish like grammas, and six line wrasses. They are real rtrouble unless you have a very large tank with lots of hiding places. :nervous:

 

[loopy]

good info mary....my daughter is looking into what fish she wants next. I'll give her your info. What kind of art do you do? I am an artist also.

 

[mary]

Loopy, Well, I don't report or write. That is a wonderful talent. I painted in acrylic and oil and pastels, and drew for years, now am sculpting stone. Went from very realistic because that is familiar to me to very abstract because for me that is a real challenge in getting out what is inside. Arthritis does minimize the time I would like to spend on it but at least twice a week I can sculpt. What medium and style are yours? Have actually even done colored pencel drawings of my corals and fish, just for a short time. Of course those are more illustrational but for my own enjoyment.
When your daughter chooses her fish, the big decision is does she want a more aggressive tank, or non-aggressive. Also if she wants corals, many of the very beautiful exotic fish eat corals. She probably knows that but it is always good to ask. Some invertibrates are not so reef safe either. Lots of reading differnt books, not just one or two, and of course there are many knowledgable people on these forums. I am experienced where some of the folks that can answer your questions are very educated and experienced in the marine biology field.

 

[mary]

Loopy, Yikes, I do not want to mislead your daughter. The Royal Gramma is a territorial fish and definately needs its own space and hiding place , and it displayed assertiveness when other tank "buddies" entered the its domain. However, it never struck out at them, just postured. Upon adding the six line Wrasse, it became very assertitive at protecing its space; eventually the wrasse attacked it so much that the beautiful little fish could not take any more and died. Six lines are truly aggressive. They never give up. Guess what I am saying is that as long as the gramma is not presented with a prey fish that is aggressive, then they are fine to have. I miss mine. Purchased a Brazilian Gramma which proved to be a very different story. The Brazilian Gramma had to be removed. It is not quite as stunning as thr Royal Gramma. It gets larger and it does not have the black line at the eye. I had to take it out. It hounded my gobies, as did the wrasse, which also had to be removed.:happyfish