Marinebetta will it eat my percula clown fish

[Blowfishaq]

Petco says it will not. Am I ok.

 

[Anonymous]

First of all, Petco is the worst place to go for advice. It just so happens in this case that they are right. The marine betta is a type of small grouper, but it's swallowing capacity is not nearly what would be required to dispatch even a small maroon. Now, I'm assuming you don't have a 3/4" clownfish!!
The marine betta is a shy fish and needs plenty of caves and crevices to hide in, or it gets stressed and you will never see it. If it's a small tank and the maroon is the only other fish you run into an aggression problem as well.
Jim

 

[Anonymous]

Marine Bettas are not groupers, I believe. It's more of a comet or assessor. At least that's what I've read. It shouldn't be that aggressive toward clownfish. It's actually reef-safe, I've also read. When I had mine, it hid for the first three weeks, but then would be out most of the day.

Peace,

Chip

 

[davelin315]

Never had a marine betta, but I think it is technically in the grouper family, as are assessors. Assessors do not get very large, around the same size as a royal gramma, and share very common habits. I know if my royal gramma could fit a clown in its mouth, it would eat it, and I've heard that marine bettas will eat whatever fits in their mouths, so I would avoid it if it looks like it can eat your clown.

 

[Terry B]

Marine betta behave nothing like groupers and IMO it is wrong to consider them groupers. If it helps, I have owned two. One for almost 8 years and my current on for 10 now. Neither bothered any of the much smaller fish in the tank. BTW, mine has been with a clown about 1/4 it size for 10 years now. I think betta should be the largest fish in a peaceful tank. It has never bothered any of my shrimp either. I feed it small pieces of seafood, freeze dried pacifica plankton, live black worms, brine shrimp and most anything but flake food and algae.
Terry B

 

[Angel 1]

My betta is a big baby, begs for food and lets the tang push her around. The clown and the betta get along great and are never very far apart. My clown has tanken to a shroom and the betta hovers above it.

 

[Minh Nguyen]

I got my marine betta for 4 years. He was about 3.5-4 inches when I bought him. Now he is 6 inches. I never see him eat anything for the first two years. My tank always has lots of rock caves. He must eat something. Now he eats mysis shrimps, or any meaty food i put in the tank. He initiallly, he did not eat any of my shrimps. He was in a 100 g tank with a pair of CBS and a pair of cleaner shrimp for two years without problem. Lately, my pair of cleaner shrimps went missing about 16 months ago. I think it must be him. I have pepermints xhrimps in the tank without problem.
I don't think you need to worry about your Clowns with Marine Bettas.

 

[Cabreradavid]

Hello all,

The Marine Betta (Calloplesiops altivelis) is actually in the rounhead family (Plesiopidae) and not the grouper family (Serranidae)although they do belong to the same order (Perciformes).