Clown Trigger Aggression

[emperorangel]

Lee

I have a 1 to 2inch clown trigger with tail. Can I add a blue throat trigger to him ..let say 3 to 4inch a little bigger.

Raising him since a baby put down a clown trigger agressiveness?

thank you

[leebca]

I've owned Clown Triggerfishes that were about a half-inch in size when I got them. Didn't have their final markings on them, only the hint of what might come. They grow up to be mean.

I think it's in their genes emperorangel. It would be like saying if I raised a crocodile from the egg in a hen house, it wouldn't eat chickens when it was 8 feet long.

The Blue Throat Trigger (Xanthichthys auromarginatus) better known as the Bluejaw Triggerfish, is one of the more pleasant Triggerfishes. It has been known to be reef compatible on occasion and even live with living shrimp. This Trigger would eventually be bullied by the Clown, once the Clown got a bit bigger and felt more like it was in charge (which the Blue Throat would not dispute).

These fish of the size you mention should be a 125+ gallon display tank.

[emperorangel]

lee

How fast do these grow? He seem to have almost grow 1/2 inch in a month to 2 inch. Usually any food in the tank he would consume it until there is nothing left.

His stomach is huge after a meal and then he would go to sleep.

Is this normal?

thanks

[leebca]

Unfortunately, many of the predatory fishes are glutens. Nature has built in a 'if you see prey, chase, kill, and eat' alarm. They will and do overeat. I've seen them eat to the point of what I thought they would explode.

In short, the behavior you see is not a good sign.

That is one reason they don't do well in a community tank. You can't get food past them to the other fishes. If there are no other fishes to feed, you should try and restrict the feedings to once every other day if you have a strong over-eater. At this size, a smaller daily feeding is better. You should monitor the amount it is eating. You might want to begin with about no more than an estimated 5% of their body weight at the feeding.

The small ones grow fast. It is a thing that Mother Nature has provided for to increase their chance of survival. Little fishes get eaten, so the faster the predatory fish grows, the less likely it will get eaten. So the small ones tend to have a 'spurt' in growth. At about 4 or 5 inches, their growth can be 1.0 to 1.5 inches a year if fed properly.