Nemo host ideas.

As per our agreement with my wife to allow me to set-up a reef tank I have to include Nemo :-/, so with my tank nearly ready for stocking and since I have to get a Nemo, I decided I am going to include an Anemone, any suggestions on a good small, colorful host for Nemo?

 

Is this a new tank? Anemones shouldn't be added for at least six months. They require pristine, stable water conditions. That said, a rose bubble tip would be perfect for down the road.

 

I agree with the first answer. Wait to add any anemone. Adding it now will just ensure it's death shortly down the road. Wait at least 6 months! But there are alternatives for a host for a clown. Frogspawns and torch corals are very good hosts for a clown. I actually currently have one that is hosting 3 frogspawn! If you want more of an "anemone look" then I would go for a torch coral or even a long tenticle plate coral. Those corals you can add soon without them dying because they can tolerate some swings in the water parameters and still be healthy. Clowns are known to host pretty much anything. I have seen them hosting hairy mushrooms, anthelia, xenia, hammer coral, frogspawns, torch coral, plate coral (short tenticle and long tenticle, even zoanthids! If you pick it right then you can match the right host to your clown. Your best bet though, especially if you want that "anemone look" would probably be a torch or long tenticle plate. Make sure to keep a sharp eye on the hosting though... sometimes clownfish that be too rough and end up killing the LPS coral. My clown and 2 of my friends clowns are actually very gentle with the host coral, but it's not always like that. Just wanted to warn you about that. In the future you can add the anemone but it's hard sometimes to get the clown to switch hosts. Probably a rose bubble tip would be the best bet for a host though... they will host pretty much any species of clown. Remember an anemone can take a "walk" anytime! And kill every other coral it touches during it's little tour! Good Luck! i hope I gave you some ideas!

 

After i was convinced that my tank was reasonably stable, i got a LTA along with a black clown at the same time. They were together and already hosting at the LFS which helped to make my decision. Im not sure if hosting in the LFS translates into hosting after being moved, but it did in my case. They were back together in 15 minutes after they were both acclimated. The nem has not been hard to take care of so far (about 2 1/2 months) and I have no horror stories with him yet. He was HUGE and very healthy when i got him. Good luck and do lots of reading first!!

 

oohhh! I didn't know you can use Coral to host a clownfish, I am not sure if I really even want an anemone, thanks for the tip, I didn't know about waiting 6 months to include anemones, guess I got time to consider it.

 

Well, if you are planing on keeping a bunch of coral, then I wouldn't get an anemone, or at least until you are more experienced. Tell your wife about all of the other choices for a host for a clown. There are much prettier choices out there coralwise than an anemone in my opinion. The long tenticle plates can be VERY VERY beautiful! A pink or purple tipped frogspawn are very pretty too and reasonably priced. Just shop around! Good luck

 

But if you go with an euphyllia host, make sure it's big!!!! A decent size clown can kill a small to medium sized torch my being hosted by it.

 

Yeah, I'd really read up on anemones before getting one. LOTS of stuff to consider. And just FYI, an anemone seems to have as much chance of hosting a clown as a torch, a powerhead, a rock, a corner etc. My uv filter personally hosts my clowns, and I have a frog, torch, hammer and 2 large ricordea for it.

 

Just my opinion, but I wouldn't put an anemone in a community reef tank. If you have to do a clown and anemone, do it in their own tank. Do lots of reading and studying, and decide if you want the risk. Keep in mind an anemone can eat any of the other fish and some inverts in the tank. If it decides to get get up and move, there goes every coral in its path. And if it goes south and starts to die, it can release a toxin into the water which can wipe out an entire system.
And another thing to consider on top of that, is there is no sure thing the clown will pair up with it. As other said corals, powerheads, heaters, overflow boxes, etc are all places the clown may choose, even with an anemone in the tank. My maroon clown currently lives in a fake mushroom coral in my FO tank. In my reef, a mated pair of ocellaris love their zoa patch.

 

yeah your tank probably wont be stable enough for a nem for a good 7-10 months. although its a topic of debate, many people say 6 months many people say no less than a year. so somewhere between there and you should be safe.

many times as well a clown hosting a coral can have ill effects on the clowns health, much like the ill effects of a clown hosting a condy long term. they are not used to the potent sting of the corals sweeper tentacles and therefore often times develop scars on their sides as a result. which is very similar to the results of a clown hosting an Atlantic anemone.

for a first nem i would suggest a bta or lta. any other species will be a bit too demanding.