Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 2: Preparing to raise a pair of clownfish
• Part 2 of 2: Raising hatched clownfish
• Warnings

Clownfish are small brightly colored fish that are a delightful addition to a home saltwater aquarium. They are fun to raise and can be easily grown at home with a little care, attention and know-how. Here are some basic steps that will help you successfully grow clownfish in your own tank.

To step

Part 1 of 2: Preparing to raise a pair of clownfish

1. Familiarize yourself with the basics of keeping a saltwater aquarium. Fish farming is a project that should be tackled by people who are experienced in setting up and maintaining saltwater aquariums. While breeding these fish is not difficult, it does require some knowledge of fish nutrition and life cycles, not to mention having the right supplies for proper aquarium filtration and ecosystem development.
   • If you'd like to start setting up your own aquarium, you may want to check out our How to Start a Saltwater Aquarium article before diving into fish farming.
2. Get a mating pair from an aquarium store. Clownfish are external reproducers, meaning that the female fish lays eggs and the male fish fertilizes them after they are laid. For this to happen you need to get a pair of clownfish that are already paired, i.e. paired with each other.
   • Many aquarium stores sell mating pairs specifically for breeding clown fish. If your store doesn't have one in stock, they can probably order a couple just for you. Don't be afraid to ask!
3. Develop a mating pair. The other way in which you can get a mating pair is by developing two young clownfish into a mating pair yourself. Start by buying two clownfish when they are still young. One of the wonderful things about clownfish is that they are all born neither male nor female, so you don't have to worry about getting a male and a female. It doesn't matter what pair you get.
   • The development into a male or female fish does not happen until the fish get older. In fact, the sex of the fish is determined by the dominance of the fish when they fight each other. The dominant fish will change sex to female and the less dominant will become male.
   • If you keep a lot of clownfish in the same tank, only one mating pair will develop. The most dominant of all becomes feminine and the second most dominant becomes masculine. The rest will remain genderless.
   • If you want to keep fighting to a minimum and have the fish switch sexes as quickly as possible, it is wise to get a clownfish that is bigger than the other; so it is clear from the outset which is the dominant one.
4. Keep the water in the aquarium clean. Clown fish are not as sensitive to water conditions as other fish, but keeping the water clean increases the likelihood of them reproducing.
5. Place plants and stones in your tank. Place anemones in the tank to make the clownfish feel more comfortable. While this is not really necessary, it does increase the chances that your pair will breed. You should also have live rock in the tank. Living rocks are rocks that come out of the sea and form the basis for the development of coral reefs. The living rock provides shelter for the fish and gives them a surface on which to lay and care for their eggs.
6. Control the aquarium lighting with a timer. Keep it light during the day and dark at night on a regular schedule. This regularity has a relaxing effect on the clownfish, and they are therefore more prone to spawning.
7. Recognize the changes in clownfish behavior that indicate spawning. The female, the larger of the two fish, will grow thicker around her center, indicating that she is preparing to release eggs. Both fish can also start cleaning the rocks with their beaks and fins to prepare them for eggs.
8. Watch for the clownfish eggs. When the eggs are laid, they will be orange in color and attached to the rocks. The male clownfish will nurse them, swim around them and swing their fins over them to aerate them. He can also pick off the dead specimens.
9. Follow the changes in the eggs. Clownfish go through several stages of development. As said before, they start out as an orange color that changes hue.
   • The eggs should hatch after about seven to ten days. You should feed the baby fish live rotifers for the first week. Rotifers are plankton that many species feed on. Then you can start feeding live brine shrimp. Clownfish babies only eat live food.
10. Set up a separate breeding tank after the eggs have been laid. It does not have to be very large, an aquarium with a capacity of 40 liters will do just fine for the hatched young. Make sure the aquarium does not have a large filter, but instead an air stone that releases small bubbles or some other gentler means to deliver oxygen. Too much filtration could easily kill all of your little baby fish.
    • You also need to provide good lighting for the baby fish, as they will forage for food, and their vision is not the best. The light should not be too bright, one light bulb is enough, and it should be as diffuse as possible.

Part 2 of 2: Raising hatched clownfish

1. Move the hatched fry to a separate aquarium. Some breeders move the eggs before hatching, but most wait for the hatchlings to hatch because moving the hatchlings is easier. Either way, you will need to raise the fry in a separate tank as clownfish are known to eat their own eggs and hatched fry. Make sure you have the extra tank ready in advance.
2. Feed the hatched fry with food. While in the egg sac, the embryos use energy from the yoke to survive, but once they hatch, the hatched young need fast food!
   • Clown babies should be fed live rotifers, which are microscopic aquatic creatures. These can sometimes be found at an aquarium store, but you should check with yours to be sure.
   • Many clownfish breeders find it easier to grow their own rotifers to feed their broods than to buy them from an aquarium store. Make sure you have a steady supply of them before starting the hatching process or the broods will die at this stage.
3. Change 20 to 50% of the water in their tank daily. This is important to keep the water clean, but it also ensures that the water is clear enough for the hatched fry to see the rotifers they need for food.
4. Expect some of your baby fish to fail the transition from to fish. One of the most difficult transitions in a clownfish's life is when they transition from the larval stage to the young clownfish stage.
   • To give them a good chance of development, turn their food from rotifers into live brine shrimp to give them enough energy to grow quickly. You can also add nutrients to the water, such as those sold to keep saltwater reef aquariums healthy.
5. Watch your baby fish turn into fry. If the fish get through the transition well, you should start to see the clownfish's signature color develop on your fish. They should keep growing quickly, so make sure to keep feeding them plenty of food and keep the water clear and clean.

Warnings

• Do not put different types of clown fish together. They will fight and stress each other and not lay eggs when that happens.