Clown in Brackish Water?

[PrettyFishies]

Anyone ever read anywhere anything that said you could have a clownfish in a brackish cichlid tank? Or that people breed clowns for FW and Brackish water? A colleague of mine actually bought a clownfish and put it in his cichlid tank.... 2 days ago... I'm counting....cause I don't see it lasting....

 

[reefrunner69]

Well, the African rift lakes used to be part of the ocean many many years ago before the shifting of continents seperated them. It is a fact that african cichlids and damsels and clowns are all very closely related. But, I think it is a strech to call African cichlids brackish fish and it is certainly a stretch to call clowns brackish. The clown may last for quite sometime, but what is for certain is that both types of fishes lives will be drtastically shortened by the damage done to their kidneys from living in the hypersalinated and hyposalinated water, respectively.

 

[PrettyFishies]

OK... maybe I don't understand the meaning of brackish. We use Malawi Lake Salt for the tank... I thought any salt added makes it "brackish"

 

[reefrunner69]

I thought any salt added makes it "brackish"

I would say that brackish has a certain level just as SW has a level. However the brackish range would be from slightly above straight fresh upto full blown SW. Most are going to go for somewhere in the middle. The salts may indeed make it brackish, but more than likely it simply makes the water hard. There is a difference between Sodium bicarbonate and Sodium Chloride, but both are salts.