How to capture/catch clownfish in a tank - Page 2

Clownen · 09/04/2004, 07:55 PM

I have found clowns to be really cute. My favorite is the Percula.
Jhardman, Can you sell me some perculas and how much? Possible to do over night shipping?
lmk, I really want a nemo or 2 in my tank!!! Got an anemony waiting for them.

kyle

Clownen · 09/05/2004, 12:31 PM

Also, as most nets can be painfull, and if a net is your last resort, its a smart Idea to use a mesh shrimp net. These nets are soft in texture, and will be less painfull for your clown.

Foster · 09/15/2004, 10:41 AM

I don't know what fantasyland you guys buy these clowns at, that you can hand feed, herd into a container, grab with your hands, scratch there heads, rub there bellies

but every clown I have had (every fish for that matter) becomes very concerned whenever a net, hand, or container is present.....including the 2 GSMs I'm trying to remove right now. HELP!

I have a RBTA that they live in, but the clowns have dug up most of the sand under my LR, and the anemone has moved to the underside of the LR, I cant really get my hand in the anemone to grab them at night, they run from the net, container, and my hand.

My tank is 225, and I have over 350lbs of LR, so it is a pain chasing them around the tank. I have tried baiting a clear container, (I think I actually heard them laugh at me

), I tried the night attack, to no luck, as soon as I get my hand down there, they are awake, and just cruise into the rockwork and wait for me to give up.

I guess my last resort, is to try to remove the anemone to an open area, so I can snatch them up.

What is the technique to get the anemones foot off LR?? I really don't want to have to do this, but it is either this, or I make a small harpoon out of rubber bands, and bamboo skewers, to which I will probably shoot my eye out

bgi · 09/15/2004, 10:58 AM

For me, I got TR ocellaris clowns. They come running up for a snack any time I get close to the tank. I can hand feed them. Way back when I had one in the JBJ 12 gallon with an orchid dottyback, if I forgot to feed them, the clown would jump into the back sump area. I assume the dottyback was the cause. To get him out, I'd place a small plastic cup in the sump - he'd jump right in expecting me to dump him back in the main tank, then look for a snack. Your clowns are obviously uncultured, untrained heathens.

I've read here that aiming a powerhead at an anemone's foot will encourage it to let go. I've never tried it. I wouldn't want to pull one off.

Hound · 11/15/2004, 04:48 AM

this method works with even damsels ...dont feed for a few days...put some good smelly food in a net against the current so it stays to the back of the net and so the net is fully open and not bunched and wait for the fish to creep up and grab the food ....got my PITA damsel in 5 minutes and i agree wish i could find friendly fish that let me hand feed ...all the fish ive ever had hides in sec as soon as THE HAND comes in

p0tpie · 11/16/2004, 12:56 AM

i find that sucking them up with a syphon is very easy but will probably also kill them

matt the fiddler · 12/20/2004, 11:10 PM

that depends on the size of your siphon. 2" would work

has anyone resorted to slurp guns?

Rod Buehler · 12/21/2004, 06:58 AM

I used to use slupe guns (turkey baster) to get baby banggai out of the main reef. Worked well.

Foster · 12/21/2004, 10:54 AM

Update on my GSM. After trying everything I could think of and read. Nothing worked. I resulted back to the only way I know how to get fish out of water. 2lb line w/ a size 22 barbless hook. I fished out both GSM in less than 3 minutes uninjured. They both lived in my fuge for 2 weeks before I got rid of them.

matt the fiddler · 12/21/2004, 02:24 PM

that has to be my fav method to read about

Foster · 12/21/2004, 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by matt the fiddler
that has to be my fav method to read about

They are fighter

The hardest part was trying to keep the other fish from snatching up the hook. Both of my GSM were in an RBTA, and the RBTA kept grabbing the fishing line when it would touched its feeler.

The second clown went after the hook with no bait on it.

jwedehase · 02/13/2005, 08:09 PM

I just had a success story I thought I'd share. I read all these ideas, but none worked. My tomato clown is a runner, and a world class one, at that. It darts into its host if I even enter the room. As soon as anything foreign entered the water, it was out of sight, hiding in places I didn't even know it fit into.

Luckily, he hosts in a xenia, which is easily moved... even INTO a specimen box. It took him about 4 hours to get used to the idea, especially after I had stressed him with the whole net episode, but it worked. With the host inside the specimen box, which was on the sand bed, he eventually made his way into the box, as well.

rtcpenguin · 02/15/2005, 01:33 AM

What a silly clown. Great pic.

markcasto · 03/02/2005, 05:15 PM

I use a small sheet of glass to move them along where I can herd them into an acrylic box 5x5 I think clear is best and nets are just highly suspect!

Fursphere · 03/24/2005, 05:39 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by rtcpenguin
What a silly clown. Great pic.

What clown isn't silly?

kayl · 04/02/2005, 03:47 PM

I like to do a variation on the specimen box- I use bags like from the LFS...

MJI · 04/15/2005, 04:27 AM

Having tried all the methods I'm still out of luck.

I have a very bullyish clarkii, who at the same time is very skittish, and in the months I've had her i hae never been able to get her to hand feed.

Can anyone suggest any more tricks for catching. Her BTA is at the back of the tank, foot under a rook, and yu can guess what happens there - she darts right under there too.

Im stuck, and this bully is beating up anything she can.

kayl · 04/15/2005, 10:36 AM

tried it @ night yet?

MJI · 04/15/2005, 10:41 AM

Yup, sleeps in nem, base of back of tank!!

(

kayl · 04/15/2005, 10:44 AM

did you try not feeding her for a few days? I've NEVER seen a fish that could resist coming to the top after not being fed for 3 or 4 days...

TheyCallMeFishy · 04/19/2005, 11:20 PM

oops, i just netted my marron yesterday and it did get caught in her gills, althought i originanly thought she was bighting on to it.

r 3lusive · 05/02/2005, 10:35 AM

yeah i think you should get the biggest mesh net possible turn off or dim the lights and herd it into a corner and scoop him up from underneath has always been the easiest for me

Meezer · 06/03/2005, 06:54 PM

Great advice, all of it! Sincere thanks from a newbie!

saltkreep · 06/21/2005, 08:22 PM

I have never had a problem. Do you use a bayster for feeding? clown fish will come right to the tip for feeding. get a net breeder and use only the top frame and net. tie fishing line to all four corners with a single line out of the top of the tank. you will need to turn off all pumps. try to keep the net about mid way from the top. as long as you can get the clown to the bayster thats over the net, YOU GOTTUM!!! this has worked for me many times. hawks,clowns,damsels! GOOD LUCK

ReeferJones · 06/28/2005, 12:21 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by platapus
Update on my GSM. After trying everything I could think of and read. Nothing worked. I resulted back to the only way I know how to get fish out of water. 2lb line w/ a size 22 barbless hook. I fished out both GSM in less than 3 minutes uninjured. They both lived in my fuge for 2 weeks before I got rid of them.

I am seriously about to do this, I can't get this bastard clarkii out.

11/15/2004, 04:48 AM	#30
Hound Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Farmington, New York Posts: 711	this method works with even damsels ...dont feed for a few days...put some good smelly food in a net against the current so it stays to the back of the net and so the net is fully open and not bunched and wait for the fish to creep up and grab the food ....got my PITA damsel in 5 minutes and i agree wish i could find friendly fish that let me hand feed ...all the fish ive ever had hides in sec as soon as THE HAND comes in __________________ Have you ever tried to shrink like a ice cube in a sink? Current Tank Info: 75 gallon reef,60 lbs live rock..30 lbs live sand, Overflow to a 20 gallon sump...cpr protein skimmer 3 powerheads maxi 600's and 1200

12/21/2004, 06:58 AM	#33
Rod Buehler Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: DeKalb, IL Posts: 3,070	I used to use slupe guns (turkey baster) to get baby banggai out of the main reef. Worked well. __________________ Rod Buehler Biodiversity matters because all life on earth has a right to exist. Current Tank Info: many

04/02/2005, 03:47 PM	#41
kayl Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Milwaukee Posts: 1,098	I like to do a variation on the specimen box- I use bags like from the LFS... __________________ "Law abiding citizens sleep peacefully in their beds solely because dedicated men and women stand ready to do violence on their behalf." - Support Law Enforcement! Current Tank Info: 75 gallon Oceanic, 2 Osc. Clowns, 2 Melanarus Wrasses, 2 Bangai Cardinals, 1 Yellow Watchman Goby, 1 Yellow Tang

04/15/2005, 04:27 AM	#42
MJI Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: England Posts: 443	Having tried all the methods I'm still out of luck. I have a very bullyish clarkii, who at the same time is very skittish, and in the months I've had her i hae never been able to get her to hand feed. Can anyone suggest any more tricks for catching. Her BTA is at the back of the tank, foot under a rook, and yu can guess what happens there - she darts right under there too. Im stuck, and this bully is beating up anything she can. __________________ Mike Current Tank Info: Tankless :(

04/15/2005, 10:36 AM	#43
kayl Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Milwaukee Posts: 1,098	tried it @ night yet? __________________ "Law abiding citizens sleep peacefully in their beds solely because dedicated men and women stand ready to do violence on their behalf." - Support Law Enforcement! Current Tank Info: 75 gallon Oceanic, 2 Osc. Clowns, 2 Melanarus Wrasses, 2 Bangai Cardinals, 1 Yellow Watchman Goby, 1 Yellow Tang

09/04/2004, 07:55 PM	#26
Clownen Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Troutdale, Oregon Posts: 109	I have found clowns to be really cute. My favorite is the Percula. Jhardman, Can you sell me some perculas and how much? Possible to do over night shipping? lmk, I really want a nemo or 2 in my tank!!! Got an anemony waiting for them. kyle

09/05/2004, 12:31 PM	#27
Clownen Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Troutdale, Oregon Posts: 109	Also, as most nets can be painfull, and if a net is your last resort, its a smart Idea to use a mesh shrimp net. These nets are soft in texture, and will be less painfull for your clown.

09/15/2004, 10:41 AM	#28
Foster Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: California Posts: 1,733	I don't know what fantasyland you guys buy these clowns at, that you can hand feed, herd into a container, grab with your hands, scratch there heads, rub there bellies but every clown I have had (every fish for that matter) becomes very concerned whenever a net, hand, or container is present.....including the 2 GSMs I'm trying to remove right now. HELP! I have a RBTA that they live in, but the clowns have dug up most of the sand under my LR, and the anemone has moved to the underside of the LR, I cant really get my hand in the anemone to grab them at night, they run from the net, container, and my hand. My tank is 225, and I have over 350lbs of LR, so it is a pain chasing them around the tank. I have tried baiting a clear container, (I think I actually heard them laugh at me ), I tried the night attack, to no luck, as soon as I get my hand down there, they are awake, and just cruise into the rockwork and wait for me to give up. I guess my last resort, is to try to remove the anemone to an open area, so I can snatch them up. What is the technique to get the anemones foot off LR?? I really don't want to have to do this, but it is either this, or I make a small harpoon out of rubber bands, and bamboo skewers, to which I will probably shoot my eye out

09/15/2004, 10:58 AM	#29
bgi Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Georgia Posts: 185	For me, I got TR ocellaris clowns. They come running up for a snack any time I get close to the tank. I can hand feed them. Way back when I had one in the JBJ 12 gallon with an orchid dottyback, if I forgot to feed them, the clown would jump into the back sump area. I assume the dottyback was the cause. To get him out, I'd place a small plastic cup in the sump - he'd jump right in expecting me to dump him back in the main tank, then look for a snack. Your clowns are obviously uncultured, untrained heathens. I've read here that aiming a powerhead at an anemone's foot will encourage it to let go. I've never tried it. I wouldn't want to pull one off.

11/16/2004, 12:56 AM	#31
p0tpie Moved On Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 39	i find that sucking them up with a syphon is very easy but will probably also kill them

12/20/2004, 11:10 PM	#32
matt the fiddler Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Quad Cities Posts: 1,897	that depends on the size of your siphon. 2" would work has anyone resorted to slurp guns?

12/21/2004, 10:54 AM	#34
Foster Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: California Posts: 1,733	Update on my GSM. After trying everything I could think of and read. Nothing worked. I resulted back to the only way I know how to get fish out of water. 2lb line w/ a size 22 barbless hook. I fished out both GSM in less than 3 minutes uninjured. They both lived in my fuge for 2 weeks before I got rid of them.

12/21/2004, 02:24 PM	#35
matt the fiddler Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Quad Cities Posts: 1,897	that has to be my fav method to read about

02/13/2005, 08:09 PM	#37
jwedehase Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Central CA, USA Posts: 908	I just had a success story I thought I'd share. I read all these ideas, but none worked. My tomato clown is a runner, and a world class one, at that. It darts into its host if I even enter the room. As soon as anything foreign entered the water, it was out of sight, hiding in places I didn't even know it fit into. Luckily, he hosts in a xenia, which is easily moved... even INTO a specimen box. It took him about 4 hours to get used to the idea, especially after I had stressed him with the whole net episode, but it worked. With the host inside the specimen box, which was on the sand bed, he eventually made his way into the box, as well.

02/15/2005, 01:33 AM	#38
rtcpenguin Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Fairfax, VA Posts: 575	What a silly clown. Great pic.

03/02/2005, 05:15 PM	#39
markcasto Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: England Suffolk Posts: 193	I use a small sheet of glass to move them along where I can herd them into an acrylic box 5x5 I think clear is best and nets are just highly suspect!

04/15/2005, 10:41 AM	#44
MJI Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: England Posts: 443	Yup, sleeps in nem, base of back of tank!! ( __________________ Mike Current Tank Info: Tankless :(

04/15/2005, 10:44 AM	#45
kayl Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Milwaukee Posts: 1,098	did you try not feeding her for a few days? I've NEVER seen a fish that could resist coming to the top after not being fed for 3 or 4 days... __________________ "Law abiding citizens sleep peacefully in their beds solely because dedicated men and women stand ready to do violence on their behalf." - Support Law Enforcement! Current Tank Info: 75 gallon Oceanic, 2 Osc. Clowns, 2 Melanarus Wrasses, 2 Bangai Cardinals, 1 Yellow Watchman Goby, 1 Yellow Tang

04/19/2005, 11:20 PM	#46
TheyCallMeFishy Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Orange County, Huntington!! Posts: 212	oops, i just netted my marron yesterday and it did get caught in her gills, althought i originanly thought she was bighting on to it. __________________ Slave to the Tank Current Tank Info: 50 Gal Mixed Reef

05/02/2005, 10:35 AM	#47
r 3lusive Registered Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: earth Posts: 14	.... yeah i think you should get the biggest mesh net possible turn off or dim the lights and herd it into a corner and scoop him up from underneath has always been the easiest for me __________________ life.

06/03/2005, 06:54 PM	#48
Meezer Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Virginia Posts: 30	Great advice, all of it! Sincere thanks from a newbie! __________________ The Fish: 10-gal SW, 75-gal SW FOWLR, 5-gal FW betta, 10-gal FW guppy, 75-gal FW oscar The Fish Watchers: 3 Siamese cats, 1 AmStaff dog, 1 German Shepherd Dog (Czech lines), 2 Guinea Pigs Current Tank Info: 10-gal nano; 75-gal, FOWLR

06/21/2005, 08:22 PM	#49
saltkreep Premium Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Vacaville ca Posts: 199	I have never had a problem. Do you use a bayster for feeding? clown fish will come right to the tip for feeding. get a net breeder and use only the top frame and net. tie fishing line to all four corners with a single line out of the top of the tank. you will need to turn off all pumps. try to keep the net about mid way from the top. as long as you can get the clown to the bayster thats over the net, YOU GOTTUM!!! this has worked for me many times. hawks,clowns,damsels! GOOD LUCK