My maroon clownfish is starting to host some green hair algae that has grown on the back of the tank. Is this normal? lol
Clownfish Hosting Algae
- Thread starter Jesshika
- Start date
Yep agreed. Clowns can be hosted by just about anything, even a corner of the tank or the top of a heater.
In the wild clownfish live in the tentacles of anemones. Anemones tentacles can sting fish, similar to a jellyfish but less intense, but clownfish have developed a method of becoming resistant to that sting.
Anyway the clown is 'hosted' by the anemone, one animal being the home for another animal is called hosting. Unlike many fish that swim all over the reef, once a clownfish has found an anemone to live in it will stay there. In an aquarium there is usually no anemone so the clownfish simply finds the closest thing, in its mind anyway, to an anemone. Why is this 'hosting' behaviour so strong in clownfish, well basically since the anemone can sting, the clownfish is safe from predators within the tentacles. So the need for a clownfish to be hosted by something is a survival instinct. In the aquarium environment clownfish do perfectly fine without an anemone because there aren't any predators in an aquarium.
The relationship seems to only benefit the clownfish but studies have shown that in the wild an anemone with clownfish will do better than an anemone without clownfish. It is a symbiotic relationship, both animals benefit equally.
Anyway the clown is 'hosted' by the anemone, one animal being the home for another animal is called hosting. Unlike many fish that swim all over the reef, once a clownfish has found an anemone to live in it will stay there. In an aquarium there is usually no anemone so the clownfish simply finds the closest thing, in its mind anyway, to an anemone. Why is this 'hosting' behaviour so strong in clownfish, well basically since the anemone can sting, the clownfish is safe from predators within the tentacles. So the need for a clownfish to be hosted by something is a survival instinct. In the aquarium environment clownfish do perfectly fine without an anemone because there aren't any predators in an aquarium.
The relationship seems to only benefit the clownfish but studies have shown that in the wild an anemone with clownfish will do better than an anemone without clownfish. It is a symbiotic relationship, both animals benefit equally.
Lupin
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- Sep 21, 2006
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Jess, do you have pics? LOL..I'm always interested to see pics of them hosted by algae, heater, etc. I had mine hosted only by anemones and live rocks.
I dont think anyone will ever understand exactly what goes through a clownfish's mind when it looks for "something" to host...they make some very bizarre choices...LOLOL
I wanted to get a picture but he didn't host it long enough for me to get my camera. I'll try to get a picture next time he does it =) Actually now I noticed my six line wrasse doing something weird today too. He was searching all around the bottom of the sand going really fast. I thought he was searching for coepods? But I never saw him do that before lol