Q&A for How to Care for a Clown Fish

Not difficult at all! Clownfish are generally hardy and easy to keep—they make a good starter fish for this reason. There are many different kinds with different personalities and dynamics between them. A good food source and enough territory is important to avoid any territorial aggression, and to keep them fat and happy!

No, you cannot. Clown fish are salt water fish and the rest you have named are all tropical/freshwater fish. You cannot mix the two. The clown fish will die immediately.

No. Clownfish are saltwater fish and need saltwater. Freshwater will kill clownfish very quickly.

Most pet stores sell marine salt. If your local aquarium doesn't sell it or is out of stock, you can order it online. Remember to specifically buy marine salt and not any other types of salts, especially not table salt.

No! If the fish are store-bought, they won't survive in sea water.

To make them grow bigger you can try giving them calcium, filter feeders, strong lighting, and high-quality water.

Bamboo sharks usually prey on clownfish and small tangs. I do not suggest keeping both in the same tank.

First you need a decent sized tank with saltwater in it. Then you can go to a fish store and buy a coral fragment. That fragment is cut from the main coral and if cut right will grow into a big new coral over time. This takes a while and can be expensive.

Anemones like things to be stable, and quick changes can cause them to have a hard time. Acclimating them to their new environment slowly will help. You want to acclimate them not only to your water parameters, but also to the temperature and lighting. Expect them to move where they want until they find a happy place. Be very careful of power heads, they will shred an anemone into pieces really fast, and not only kill the anemone, but make a big nasty mess in your tank at the same time.

No. Amazon puffers need fresh water and clowns need salt. Amazon puffers also get too large and could eat the clownfish.

You will need a 10 gallon tank, plants for the tank, a filter, a heater, and maybe a few decorations.

No. A betta feels threatened and acts aggressively toward more flashy and bright-colored fish.

No. Clown fish, and all other saltwater fish, require special aquarium salt. Regular kitchen or table salt will kill them.

You can buy them online, or at your local pet store.

Clowns are very good as beginner fish since they are cheap, easily available, and can live in smaller tanks (20+ gallons, but more is easier).

When you add the water and you are done with all the decorations (meaning that you won't be sticking your hand in again), you would add the conditioner.

A 20 gallon tank should only be enough room for a pair of clown fish.

Definitely not. Goldfish are freshwater fish and clownfish are saltwater. Tead up on keeping an aquarium and the nitrogen cycle, and keep the goldfish in freshwater (treated tap water, rather than ro/di mixed with salt for saltwater).

Wild clownfish will be very hard to care for, not to mention stressful for it, and therefore it is better to keep clownfish that have been bred in aquariums. However if you know what you're doing, a wild clownfish can be kept. I would think yes, use seawater from where it came from, but test your water and make sure it has the appropriate conditions (salinity 1.020-1.025, pH 8.1-8.4, KH 8-12, and temperature 70-80.)

Most catfish species live in freshwater, so they cannot be kept with clownfish. There are some saltwater species such as coral catfish, which could work in a community setup if your tank is large enough. A great online research for comparing compatibility is Liveaquaria.

No. Bought clownfish should be put in mixed water of mixing salt (InstantOcean or Red Sea) and RO/DI water or other purified water. Do your research on water conditions, as they are very important.

No. The first thing you should know if you're looking into that clownfish is that they're saltwater, meaning water mixed with salt. Do not mix salt with your tap water, because it could have high unsafe levels. Instead get water purified through Reverse Osmosis or De-Ionization, and mix with Saltwater Mixing Salt such as a bag of instant ocean salt or bucket of red sea salt. If you know about the Nitrogen cycle, it's the same for saltwater, but the bacteria that make it happen live in liverock instead of filter media. Try buying live rock, or buying dry rock and adding bacteria through Stability. To cycle add a few fish, or liquid Ammonia like Dr Tims.

Usually it's 1/2 cup salt with every gallon of water. Try to get your water to a specific gravity of about 1.024 or around there, which you can test with a refractometer.

No. Goldfish are freshwater and clownfish are saltwater. 5o litres is a little small for goldfish but it will do. They need cold water so house with other coldwater species. Clownfish are saltwater and that is a whole different thing.

In a reef tank/with corals, it is almost always a must. For sensitive creatures like corals they can't tolerate any high levels or fluctuations of nitrate. For FOWLR, it is optional. Buy a test kit and test your water for nitrates (after it's cycled.) And if it's above 5-10ppm, you need a protein skimmer.

It would be okay, but generally clownfish do better in a pair. Always only have one female, or else all males and one will become female. In a 55 gallon tank you could for sure have clownfish, but look into other things like firefish, goby, or shrimp.

If you want to house betta and clownfish together, then don't. One is freshwater and the other is saltwater. For the clownfish, have a saltwater aquarium, about 30-35 gallons for 5 clownfish, though it is really recommended that you only get a pair.

It is a myth that clownfish even need anemones to be happy. I have a perfectly happy pair in a FOWLR 40 gallon with only live rock and a few invertebrates. However, it is quite rewarding to see them in an anemone but anemones can be difficult to care for. A fake sea anemone works great for a decoration, though it's unlikely that they will treat it like a real anemone.

Yes! I have an ocellaris female clownfish with a male mocha clownfish. I know there are other fascinating species like snowflake, black ice, percula, pink skunk, tomato... Don't get too many unless you have a large enough tank, but a pair with two different types would work well.

For a yellow tang, if it's over 65 gallons, and for the blue if it's over 100-150 gallons, then yes, but do your research. Especially for blue tang they are hard to care for. Also keep in mind not to house more than one of the same species. Generally, yellow tang are rewarding and colorful and have been successfully housed in 55 gallons or even 40 gallons. Just make sure you know a lot about keeping your aquarium and it's cycled before adding fish.