“Normal” Clown swimming behaviour

[SubParReefer]

Hi all,

Last Tuesday (15/02) I picked up a small Ocellaris (1/1.5”) from the LFS. He was hosting a nem in the LFS and the guy who worked there so he might sulk for a few days after being separated.

He’s been eating fine and there doesn’t appear to be any sign of disease (swollen gills, torn fins, excess mucus, scratching against rock) but he does seem to kick around quite aggressively in order to move/float steady in the water. He also appears to open/close his mouth a small amount at regular intervals, maybe every 5 seconds.

I have a Fluval Evo 13.5 with an eheim compact 1000 l/hr for improved flow. Could this flow be too much for the small fish?

Parameters:
Temp 24.5-25.5 (Seneye reading)
Salinity 1.025
pH 7.85 (Seneye reading)
Nh3 0.004 (Seneye reading)
NH4 0.02499 (Seneye reading)

I’ve got manual tests in the post as I’m not entirely sure the Seneye is reading parameters correctly (or I’m not understanding them correctly).

I understand clowns are notorious for doing strange things and panicking their keepers, this is my first saltwater fish so every quirk looks like an issue!

I’ve attached a few videos of his swimming patterns.

EDIT - Apparently the videos didn’t upload.. I’ll try and find a different way to get them up.

 

[Sharkbait19]

Does it look like it’s putting a lot of effort into moving (really waving the tail)?
If so that is totally normal, especially for a young clown.
The opening and closing of the mouth is just it breathing (so definitely a good thing)!

 

[SubParReefer]

Does it look like it’s putting a lot of effort into moving (really waving the tail)?
If so that is totally normal, especially for a young clown.
The opening and closing of the mouth is just it breathing (so definitely a good thing)!

Thank you for the reassurance! Yes it’s tail is waving quite a lot. It seems to flick between either exploring the tank and riding the current or floating in one area (either near the glass, corner or rock).

I’ve read dozens of posts today about other peoples experiences which have ended in a range of happy and unfortunate ways. Looking forward to the manual test kits arriving to confirm water parameters.