[Galilean]

I’ve had 3 clown triggers each one was purchased at 1.5-2” and grew to about 6-8” in maybe 6 months. They all lived about 5-6 years.

SELECTION
Did you mail order this fish and would you recommend mail order this fish?
Hand picked, I haven’t bought anything mail order. I like to watch the fish for at least half an hour before I buy it.

Are there captive-raised/bred specimen available and where?
I haven’t looked very hard, but I doubt it unless you buy from a hobbyist.

Any tips on how you picked a healthy specimen of this species from LFS?
Standard stuff: Look for parasites. Check for cloudy eyes. This should be an active fish that eats greedily.

What do you think is the ideal size to get?
I would get a small one (2” or less) and grow it up. But that’s just personal preference.

Are there any noticeable differences in body shape, pattern or color among the same species or between juvenile and adult of this species?
Patterns vary slightly, but it’s a very bold and standard pattern. I have seen some that look faded though. Juveniles have 3 thin forehead stripes instead of one wide band and they have large white spot covering the whole body instead of just the ventral half as on adults.

Is there a way to tell the sex of this fish? I don’t know.

ACCLIMATION AND INTRODUCTION
Any special tips about the acclimation and introduction of this fish?
Standard. I don’t think they need much acclimation. They tolerate a wide range of salinity and temperature. I moved mine dozens of times with basically no acclimation because tanks had to go to school and back multiple times a year.

Any special needs for this fish or special considerations for young specimen? Feed lots of meat.

Should this fish be the first or the last to introduce to a tank?
This depends on size and tank mates of course, but a clown trigger is a very aggressive fish so generally it should be last.

COMPATIBILITY
What tankmates do you have with this fish?
I’ve kept them with damsels and groupers. Damsels can be quick enough to get away if there is sufficient live rock.

Is it a reef or FO tank?
Probably FO, unless you don’t mind losing motile inverts to predation.

Have you had more than one of this species in the same tank? If so, is there a certain male/female ratio or group number worked for you (to have a harem or pecking order)? Do they school?
I’ve seen juveniles kept in groups for a short period in the LFS, but like many LFS practices this will not work long term.

Have you had other species of the same genus/family in the same tank? No

What’s the stocking order (considering the above factors) that worked for you? Damsels added before the trigger were eventually accepted. A leopard grouper added after the trigger was also OK for a while, but the trigger had to be completly full before the grouper got anything.

Did this fish hurt/eat any of other fish (or vice versa)?
No, but it tried.

Did this fish hurt/eat Cnidaria (corals, mushrooms or anemones)?
No

Did this fish hurt/eat ornamental crustaceans (shrimps, hermits, crabs)?
Reef hermits were eaten. A Skunk cleaner shrimp was eaten after many months of peace because feeding was neglected while on vacation.

Did this fish hurt/eat Mollusks (snails, clams, oysters, mussels)?
Flame Scallops were not eaten.

Did this fish hurt/eat Echinoderms (sea cucumbers, sea stars, urchins)?

Pencil urchins and chocolate chip stars were eaten. Sea cucumbers and sea apples were not.

Did this fish hurt/eat Worms (feather dusters, flat worms, etc)?
Bristle worms were eaten.

FEEDING
How did you get this fish to eat at first?
I don’t remember it being a problem.
If this fish only accepted live food, how did you wean it over to prepared food? N/A
What’s the diet? Krill and frozen cubes

How much and how often do you feed? Typically 1 or 2 shrimp and 1 cube once a day.

How does this fish eat?(grazers, active or sedentary predators, sand sifters, etc) Naturally it would be an active predator, but in the tank it just waits for food. I trained mine to do barrel-rolls and extend its trigger on command for food. Flexing my thumb and little finger with a straight hand induced the trigger motion. A pointer finger extended, rolling my wrist was the signal for the fish to spin. It learned the trigger thing almost immediately, but the rolling trick took a month of repetition.
(only one of the three fish learned to roll)

Does this fish eat any microalgae or macroalgae in your tank? If so what type of algae? No algae was eaten.

GROWTH RATE AND LIFE SPAN
What is the initial size of your fish and maximum size it reached? How fast did it grow (how much growth over a given period of time)?
I’ve had 3 clown triggers each one was purchased at 1.5-2” and grew to about 6-8” in maybe 6 months.

What size tank did this fish live in? (or how soon did this fish outgrow what size tank)? What do you think is the minimum tank size required for an adult specimen of this fish? The fish lived in 55 gal and a 75 gal. I thought this was too small but that was the biggest I had at the time. I think they would have grown larger and lived longer in a bigger tank.

If this fish went through body pattern change from juvenile to adult, was the change complete? How long did it take? The change was complete in 6 months.

How long have you kept this fish? If you no longer have this fish, what was the cause? All three fish lived about 5-6 years and died of apparently natural causes. They are very hardy in regards to temperature. They survived 95F water (battery powered air pump running) for a whole day on several occasions due to power outages in the summer. They also can handle a wide range of salinity including permanently living in brackish water if need be for parasite treatments. I never tried keeping them in freshwater, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they could do it.

What is the longest lifespan and the maximum size of this fish in home aquarium and/or in the wild reported?
In my reading triggers are not particularly long lived fish even in the wild typically living 7-10 years. I’ve seen a clown trigger about 12” long in an aquarium.

DISEASE AND TREATMENT
What disease has this fish had? How did you treat it, for how long? What's the effect of the treatment?
Mine never had diseases, but I’ve seen them get ick and be cured by being transferred to half-salt for a few weeks.

BEHAVIOR
Does this fish change body color under any circumstances?
It can get very light when scared or very dark when angry but the overall pattern stays the same.

Does this fish dig the substrate often?
Mine did not. But they might.

How active is this fish? Is this fish shy?
This is a very active fish that always stays in the open cruising when it is the top fish in the tank. If there is insufficient room to swim it will still hang in the open.

How territorial or aggressive is this fish? How does this fish interact with tankmates?

This fish is very aggressive, but accepted tankmates after a while if It could not catch them and beat them up.

Did this fish ever jump out of the tank?
Yes, but that was to only to reach food.

How does this fish sleep?
It likes to find a place to wedge itself in a crack, but will float mid-water if there is no hiding spot available.

Does this fish allow cleaners to clean? If so which cleaner and how often?
Skunk cleaner shrimp would clean sporadically, but it ate one also.

How does this fish interact with human?
As per above comments, it is very personable and can be trained to do simple tricks. Hand feeding is dangerous however without gloves.

Did the fish release toxic substance that killed other creatures in the tank?
No.

Any other interesting observation of this fish?
This is a beautiful, active fish with a dog-like personality. It’s an excellent FO fish.

SUMMARY
Your overall assessment of this species -
How sensitive is this fish to poor water quality on a scale of 1-5? 2
2 - quite tolerant, may survive accidental ammonia or nitrite spike


Would you recommend this fish to beginners?
Yes, if you have a big tank.

Is this fish best kept in mature/established (6 months or older) tank?
My tanks never cycle, because I include plants. They are good enough for corals on day one and I never do water changes. But if you use the old accept-bad-water-as-a-fact-of-life method you may not want to risk a $100 fish on a new tank.

Any other recommendations/comments?
Reef On!