Tips on how to Correctly Breed Clownfish

1. Breeding Pair of Clownfish

To be able to breed this type of fish, you need a mated pair. The simplest way to do is to find a mated pair and the second way is to acquire two clownfish when they are still young. Young clownfish are generally males but once the dominant fish was confirmed, the dominant fish is the female. You'll be able to tell that it's the female because it is usually bigger than the male fish.

Once they start mating, they'll lay eggs every 12-18 days on a piece of rock. Be sure to make weekly water changes of at least 10% of the total amount of water. Trying to keep the water clean does cause them to almost certainly going to spawn. A good protein skimmer a very good idea to be able to decrease the regularity of changing water. If the clownfish has tank mates, the tank really should be peaceful. It’s not advisable to put different species of clownfish together simply because they may fight and stress out each other. Remember that anemone fish will not lay eggs if it is stressed. An anemone helps the clownfish feel much more comfortable in laying eggs but it's not necessary. You can use rocks with lots of hiding areas so that the fish will feel much more comfortable.

It’s best to use timer for the lighting for your tank. A timer will get the fish in the schedule of sunlight and darkness. Feed the fish in a specific time each day with a combination of flakes and frozen food. Note that if the fish aren't obtaining proper nutrients and vitamins, they'll lay eggs that have a poor quality.

Once the fish become acclimated and are also on the regular routine, they will begin to act differently around spawning time. If the female has a thicker line in the middle of her body, the fish is pregnant. When you notice that the fish is constantly cleaning a place on the rock using its mouth and fins, it means that the fish is cleaning the site for the eggs. The female will swim above the site for a couple of times until she lays the egg, then the male will follow to fertilize it. The eggs are orange in color and about 3-4mm in length. The male fish will protect and guard the eggs, and also eat the broken egg and unfertilized eggs.

2. Preparations for Clownfish

In the first day the eggs are colored orange. After a couple of days they will appear grey, and then finally grey with silver eyes. If the silver eyes already appeared, they'll hatch the following night. Before the eggs hatch, you have to prepare the following:

a. Hatchling Tank
You must raise the baby clownfish in different fish tank to make sure they're going to get proper food without competition from other tank mates.

b. Live Rotifers
Baby clownfish don’t eat flakes and any frozen food. They simply eat live food like rotifers. You'll need Nannochlopsis or Rotifer Diet because it is food for rotifers.

3. Hatch Night

Clownfish eggs will hatch about a week or maybe more depending on the water temperature. You should check the eggs everyday and when you notice that the eggs has a silver color this means that they'll hatch after the lights go out or during the night. You have to remove clownfish fry from your tank and place them in the fish tank you prepared and be sure that the two tanks have similar salinity and temperature before you move the eggs.

Switch off the filter and pump in the fish tank. There shouldn't be water current or flow inside the tank. After the lights are off, wait for about half hour and turn on your flashlight to the water. Don't shine the light at the eggs mainly because it will delay the hatchling process. The clownfish will be attracted by the light and swim towards it then begin siphoning the clownfish fry into the bucket. Then put it in the aquarium you prepared but ensure that the eggs won't be exposed in the air.

Once the eggs are in breeding tank, place an air stone or airline tube near to the eggs to be sure that the eggs gets sufficient air to hatch properly.

4. Feeding and Care

Keeping your clownfish fry alive can often be difficult. Your fry tank must always be full of rotifers for the baby fish to consume. You will notice if your baby fish is dying because they will have problems in swimming, you'll see them spinning within the water column, and sometimes they will sink towards the bottom then suddenly will start swimming again. If you see this inside your tank, your clownfish fry are starving to death. If your fish starts diving like it is being dropped to the bottom and is also having a problems in swimming, they are going to usually die in 24hrs. Add rotifers as quickly as possible. You'll able to see your fish eating the rotifers by noticing them swimming then stop, curving their tails and darting forward. Continue to feed rotifers for about a week then try feeding them with live shrimps.

Newly hatch brine shrimps are good for your fry. When brine shrimp hatch they leave a brown egg shell. The shells are always floating and the shrimps for the clownfish are usually at the bottom. For the first 2 days it is best to feed the fish with both shrimps and rotifers to ensure they're still acquiring as much vitamins as possible.

Once the clownfish fry are already eating brine shrimps, their bellies will appear orange. That's a good sign that they're getting more than enough food. Ensure that the clownfish fry do not go without food for more than 12 hours. Ensure that you always have live foods available for your fish.


Bince loves fish and nature. For more about breeding clownfish visit his site about nature aquarium.