Update... Perculas and RBTAs... pics included

So, I'm sure some of you remember me. Last semester was insanely busy for me... finishing all my coursework for my PhD and what not. The tank naturally fell behind a bit and I'm now really kicking into high gear my clean up efforts. I have taken some steps to make sure that it remains a high quality environment.

Unfortunately, during the clean up process I removed my Fish Saver insert from my Biocube 29 (as I was pulling filter media from the InTank baskets daily and it gets in the way of easy removal). After 10 months in the tank, the female clown found her way through the 1/4" gap that the Fish Saver normally plugs and managed to end up in the return chamber, dying over night. I had taken extended efforts trying to get the clown pair to enjoy being hosted by the RBTA... all to no avail. I decided to try to make the best of the situation and headed to the LFS for another clownfish as the male was acting very distraught.

I had several criteria... first, it had to be a percula (to match the other). Second, it had to be a small juvenile. I didn't want any chance of getting two fish that had started down the female path, so this was really a must. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, it had to already enjoy playing in BTAs. I knew this last one would be a challenge, but out of the 12-15 clowns they had in store, one matched all of these criteria. Within seconds of putting it in the tank... it found the anemones... The one RBTA we had early last year had split into 4 by November and split again (5 now) when I started getting the water clean. The clown now swims between three of the RBTAs happy as a clam.






I have pulled 95%+ of the algae that had grown in the tank. I have also added a protein skimmer (Slim Skim Nano - by Hydor).

The resident male clown has started getting closer to the anemones, but after a week.... has yet to actually go into one like the new clown. The two clowns do tend to spend a fair amount of time together and sleep side by side near the top of the tank.


UPDATE:
So, the new clownfish has slowly convinced the resident clownfish that anemones aren't all that bad. We found them both playing in the anemones today, although the resident clown was a bit more reserved and is not nearly as committed to the RBTAs as the newly introduced clown. Also, the RBTAs have really expanded lately. I think the protein skimmer is working excellently. There are actually 5 RBTAs in this tank, all from one original one. In the included pictures, you can see 4 of them.

 

Life happens.

They look very happy with their anemone.

 

Must be nice. My clowns want nothing to do with my RBTA and paired with my green flowerpot. weird huh?

 

My first pair didn't want to have anything host them... just satisfied swimming around the tank. I also have an orange spot goby and pistol shrimp... I love the pairings so I wanted to make sure I'd have it this time.

 

UPDATE:
So, the new clownfish has slowly convinced the resident clownfish that anemones aren't all that bad. We found them both playing in the anemones today, although the resident clown was a bit more reserved and is not nearly as committed to the RBTAs as the newly introduced clown. Also, the RBTAs have really expanded lately. I think the protein skimmer is working excellently. There are actually 5 RBTAs in this tank, all from one original one. In the included pictures, you can see 4 of them.

 

Congrats Jimmy that is great. I used to have an anemone clown combo in an old tank. I miss that. Such a cool thing to watch.

 

I'm still wondering if their coloring will start to match. The new clown is a lot lighter orange than the resident clown.