[wozza]

i would like some care infomation on this fish if anyone has any, like is it very aggressive, safe to keep with a pair clown fish?
what kind of diet should it be fed?
is it hardy?
any thing else you think is good to know about this fish

cheers james

[leebca]

I'm very glad you are asking these questions before obtaining one. It's always best to get this info before buying any kind of new fish.

I have only limited experience (I've kept only 2 over the years). This pygmy angel is a good community tank fish. It generally won't tolerate other angels (pygmies for sure and even small large angels) in its tank, unless you're considering a tank over 200 gallons, or an exceptionally well 'rocked' 100+ gallon in which you add the angels at the same time.

Like most angels it likes to do a lot of hiding. It is timid in captivity sometimes up to several months before it becomes bold. So, it shouldn't be in a tank with other community fish that are assertive or aggressive. I would hope that you would put it into a quarantine process to get it eating AND to get it used to you before you put it into your display tank. The quarantine process is particularly useful for this fish to acclimate to captive life, in addition to the obvious reasons of verifying it is disease-free.

If the pair of Anemonefish is mated and mature and in residence in the tank for some time, they may have trouble with most pygmy angels. This and many pygmy angels stay near the bottom of the tank. If the Anemonefish are mated, they would most likely claim a large area of the bottom of the tank as their territory. If the tank is large enough, all should be okay, but if the mated pair thinks that the whole tank is theirs, this angel may go into permanent hiding.

It is an omnivore and should be fed according to the recommendations here for an omnivore fish:
Feeding Marine Fish and Fish Nutrition

Hope this helps!

[wozza]

cool thanks lee,just the kind of info i was looking for.
I have lernt the hard way when it comes to impulse buying fish and have had to return 3 fish so far becuase they bully my clown fish.

so from now one its only well thourght out fish for me!

My big clown is still only 2" and has been in the tank for about 4 months, and only 4 weeks in there on its own.
The small one is about 1.5" and has been in the tank with the big one for only 4 weeks, i dont think eather of them are sexualy mature yet.

when you say mated do you mean have bred?
they are allways by each others side dont know what this mean?

would it be acseptible to keep the pigmy angel in my current tank with the clowns?
it is 100cm long x 40cm tall x 30cm wide.
it has about 15lbs of live rock and a DSB

what are your thorughts?

thanks james

[leebca]

I'd say from your description, they are mated. With that, I think the tank of those dimensions is nearly full.

With a mated pair, I'm afraid any aggressive fish might have difficulty with them. The tank is comfortable for the mated pair. You might consider a more hardy and assertive fish (but not aggressive) that is smaller than a pygmy angelfish. I don't know though the kinds of fish you like. Since the Anemonefish are omnivores you might want to have one additional omnivore or carnivore that will remain small. An appropriate Goby may be a good choice.

[wozza]

thats a shame..but ide rather not have the angel, and my clowns be happy because like so many new hobbists i got in to this hobby in the first place to keep clowns.

Other fish i have concidered to go with them are:

Any of the blennies

Pterapogon kauderni
Neocirrhitus armatus
Valencienna strigata
Synchiropus stellatus
Synchiropus splendidus
Dascyllus aruanus
Dascyllus melanurus

what do you think the compatabitaty of thoes?

thanks james

[leebca]

I'm glad you've chosen a more responsible path. So many hobbyists want to 'pack' their tanks. It doesn't work well for the aquarist nor the marine life in the long run.

Let's see, from your list:
Pterapogon kauderni is a peaceful Cardinalfish. Probably won't be strong enough to put up with a mated pair of Anemonefish.

Neocirrhitus armatus will be too large and aggressive. I don't know your clean-up crew, but these Hawkfish eat snails, crabs, and shrimp.

Synchiropus splendidus would be a choice for say an aquarium three times your size. Although they have been kept successfully in small aquariums, Mandarins should have a lot of bottom area in the tank. This is a moot point in your tank since this fish is too peaceful to hold it own against the Anemonefish. The Anemonefish probably wouldn't let food get to this fish.

The Dascyllus sp would be an interesting addition. Damsel vs. Damsel. The Anemonefish would likely be at constant war with any from this group. It would create a tank of very stressed fishes.

[i]Valencienna strigata[/] is a great sand sifter, but they do nicely in pairs. One would seem lonely and one will require a lot of substrate to sift through. I think your tank is too small to accommodate one of these, IMHO.

I'm not all that familiar with the Blennies. They are small and will stay near the bottom (which could be considered competitive to nesting Anemonefish). They are in general peaceful. They are for the most part herbivores which means the tank would be a mix of omnivores and a herbivore. This should work out fairly well, in general. It depends how much the pair will tolerate, because these fish are peaceful and could be bullied.

[wozza]

Lee,
i dont know how much the temperment of fish differs from fish to fish, but my clowns from what i have observed seem to be very tollerent and non aggressive.

i had a sixline wrass that kept the clown in the corner and wouldnt let it feed and he never tried to fight back.
same when i had a lyretail anthias.
But when the clown was in the tank for about 1 month on his own and then i added a Gobiodon okinawae the clown was not aggressive at all let the little guy do as he pleased the clown never even look at him when i put in in.

Im by no means trying to say your worng

just wandering if it possible that my clowns are more easy going than some?

thanks james

[leebca]

James,

The unknown factor in all this speculation is how an individual fish will interact with another individual fish. There is no accounting for how some things turn out.

It could very well be that the Anemonefish you have is of a different temperament than its 'average' species. Anemonefish are Damsels of a sort and have, in general, an attitude. But not all do. I introduced a Powder Brown and Powder Blue Tang of the same size into a tank at the same time and they positively act as if the other doesn't exist. Neither friend nor foe. This isn't the 'anticipated normal behavior' one would expect between these two in an aquarium.

Usually though, when an Anemonefish mates, the paternal instincts kick in. The male may not be too assertive, but the female can become quite aggressive. Even to the point that she will bite the owner/feeder if given the chance.

Nothing in my previous post is 'right' or 'wrong.' So don't be concerned about that. They are just speculative outcomes of hypothetical combinations from what is generally observed. Tank behavior can be quite different from fishes behavior in the wild and their interactions in the tank is one of the surprising and interesting parts of this hobby.

Have a fall-back plan if things don't go well when you put the new/next fish in.

[wozza]

ok lee thank you very much, as allways i feel inlightend when our conversations come to a end!!

cheers james