weird clown behavior

[king kole]

the smaller of my two true percs has been 'hovering ' at the substrate for 48 hrsalmost perpendicu lar nose down . at first in a spot that seemed to make a small bowl shape in the sand now moved and abandoned original spot but still hovering upside down . it could be my imagination its so small but looks swollen in mid body. please give me some guidance here i dont have a clue as to whats happening. is it nest prep /. swim bladder proplem? help!

 

[beth]

Has the larger perc harassed him at all? Is he eating? How long have you had them? Are they mated?

 

[king kole]

thanks beth i really love these guys and i'm so glad you responded. 1/ the larger is not harrassing but rather fending off the tang when he gets around the pagoda cup he's been territorializing lately.its located above the area the smaller clown is hovering over. the smaller is eating when food passes near but wont stop hovering in its locale. the larger i raised from a near fry 8 mo,s ago and the smaller i added 3mos ago. the tank is well estabed and the little guy is not so much stressed i think as totally focused on something with constant dorsal downward finning . i dont know what to do i'm not sure they are mated i 've read as much as i can find but theres not too much on boyfriend girlfriend clown literature. i dont think the little one can keep up this frenitic pace for much longer though idont really know whats going on

 

[beth]

Perhaps its mating season and he is scoping out a place for egg laying. Color normal?

 

[king kole]

yes the smaller is normal in coloration. can a fish continue to hover upside down for an extended period like this as a normal mating behavior or is it a sign of some pyhisiological problem ? thats really my only concern. if its some sort of behavioral pattern that i can help then i will if its not then i'll wait and hope. beth i want to take this opportunity to thank you sincerely for your very special gift to help all of us in need.

 

[beth]

Clowns typically do have some very odd positioning. Take a look over at our Clownfish Forum, and you'll see that this is typical. If everything else is normal, then this is likely nothing to worry about.
https://www.saltwaterfish.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=21

 

[king kole]

well after six days of frustration its over the little clown was still struggling this am almost horizontal hovering when the larger attacked viciously and i removed him but too late he died. this was the first attacksince this started. believe me i'm not playing stump the stars but has anyone got a clue did i do something or not do something?