Clownfish

[the_sass72]

Hi, I got a 30gT tank with 2 fish in it. One of which is my clown, the other being a purple tang (who will end up in a 75g.

I have read that you can have two clowns together and they do well, as one will become male, the other female if purchased young enough.

I've had the one clown for about 4 months, and he's happy as a lark. My daughter would like to have two clowns. I do have the option of placing the tang and the clown in the 75 at any time, but was wondering can I get away with buying a very small clown and placing it in the 30g tank? At what age would it be to late for it to change sexes? I would assume that the clown that I have is already determined (and seems to be fairly small). Would I be safe in adding a small one, and it becoming the female (provided what I have is a male) or the opposite sex?

Hope my train wreck of an idea make sense! Thanks in advance.
S

 

[Reese]

Assuming you're talking about a percula or false perc, you should be fine adding a smaller clown. You may see some aggression from the existing clown early on. This may be a problem because of the your tank size as your clown will run the new one away from his/her favorite spot and the new fish will probably be interested in interacting with the old clown (if it's healthy). Keep an eye on it but the aggression will probably settle down after a day.

As for the purple tang, if you're serious about keeping him, I'd concentrate on your upgrade ASAP. I did a similiar thing with a yellow tang and they grow FAST. Knowing what I know now, I wouldn't have purchased the tang and kept him in a 29 for any amount of time regardless of how small he was when purchased. It made my move from the 29 to 75 more rushed than I wanted. Also, if you haven't already purchased a 75 gallon tank, you might want to think about a 90 for this type of tang. Some even recommend a minimum tank size of 100 gallons for a purple as they can grow up to 10" in an aquarium...