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Clownfishes, Clownfishes
2, Clownfishes 3, Clownfish
Identification, Clownfish Selection, Clownfish
Compatibility, Clownfish Compatibility 2,
Clownfish Compatibility 3,
Clownfish Behavior,
Clown Behavior 2,
Clown Behavior 3,
Clownfish Systems, Clownfish
Feeding, Maroon Clownfish, Maroon
Clowns 2,
Clownfish Diseases
1, Clownfish Diseases 2,
Clownfish Diseases 3,
Clownfish
Disease 4, Clownfish Disease 5, Clownfish
Disease 6, Clownfish Disease 7,
Clownfish Disease 8,
Clownfish Disease 9,
Clownfish Disease 10, Clownfish
Disease 11, Clownfish Disease 12,
Clownfish Disease 13,
Clownfish Disease 14,
Clownfish Disease 15,
Brooklynellosis,
Breeding Clowns,
Clownfish Reproduction 2,
Clownfish Reproduction 3,
Clownfish and Anemones,
Clownfish/Anemones 2, Clownfish/Anemones
3, Clownfish/Anemones 4,
Clownfish/Hosts 5,
Anemones &
Clowns 1, Anemones & Clowns 2,
Damsel
Selection, Damsel Compatibility, Damsel
Feeding, Damsel Disease, Damsel
Reproduction, Related Articles:
Maroon Clowns,
Brooklynellosis,
Damselfish,
Anemones, Premnas Pix,
/The Conscientious Marine Aquarist
The
Clownfishes, Damsels of the subfamily Amphiprionae, Part 1
To: Part 2
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By Bob Fenner |
Amphiprion
bicinctus
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"Oh my gosh! That plant is eating
that fish!" You know it's got to be a neophyte observing a member of the clown or
Anemonefishes subfamily Amphiprionae, in the Damselfishes family (Pomacentridae),
cavorting amongst the tentacles of a host anemone.
Prized for their bold and bright color
patterns, comical behavior, and ability to thrive in captivity, there is much
disinformation regarding the selection and care of clown-anemone fishes. This sub-Section
attempts to present straight-forward information on how to be successful with the damsels
we call clowns.
Classification:
Is still a jumble. There are about twenty
six valid species, all but one in the genus Amphiprion; with one member in the
genus Premnas. These are further lump-able into four "complexes". Ho-boy.
Unfortunately for aquarists, Anemonefishes
are very frequently misidentified in our trade/hobby, and share the same four or five
common names. Notable species, grouped by similar appearances include:
1) Multiple-striped orange to tan to
brown clowns: Amphiprion ocellaris, variously sold as "Percula"
clowns from whom they can usually be distinguished by the presence of thick black
bordering on the white bars of the "true" Perculas, .Amphiprion percula. Other
similarly marked species include Amphiprion clarkii, Amphiprion bicinctus,
Amphiprion
chrysopterus and the rare Amphiprion sebae ("C-bay"), more often than not a
misidentified Clarkii clown. Oh yes, and the tear-shaped, saddle-back clown, Amphiprion
polymnus, the Wide-Band Anemonefish, Amphiprion latezonatus. There
are others...
| Amphiprion akindynos Allen 1972, the Barrier Reef
Anemonefish. Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. To five inches long.
Similar to Clark's Clown but has wider white bars and more consistent dark
brown body color. In a Heteractis crispa symbionts off of Heron Island,
GBR, Australia. |
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| Amphiprion allardi Klausewitz 1970, Allard's
Anemonefish. Similar to A. chrysopterus but with a more pale tail color
(to white) and widely separated distribution. East Africa coast; Kenya to
Durban. To five inches in length. Pix of an adult and juvenile by
Calvin Jennings |
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| Amphiprion bicinctus Ruppell 1828, the Two-Band or
Red Sea Anemonefish. Bright orange and brown bodied, with two vertical
body bands, the first expanded above the head. Yellow tailed. Found in the
Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Chagos Archipelago. To five inches in length.
Red Sea image. |
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| Amphiprion chagosensis Allen 1972, the Chagos
Anemonefish. Light to dark brown overall, with two narrow white body
bands, whitish tail. To four inches in length. Found in the Chagos
Archipelago and the upper Red Sea reportedly. |
No pic (got to keep my eyes open!) |
| Amphiprion chrysogaster Cuvier 1830, the Mauritian
Anemonefish. Very dark base body color, with yellow underneath and dark
tail. Confined to Mauritius and Reunion Islands in the lower Indian
Ocean. Photos by Christopher Waters
and Marina Peters. |
 
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| Amphiprion chrysopterus Cuvier 1830, the Orange-Fin
Anemonefish. West to mid Pacific; Australia, New Guinea, Marshall Islands,
Tuamotus. Yellowish-orange accents on upper and lower body and yellow
tail. To six inches. Found in three species of anemones in the wild. Some in captivity. |
 
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| Amphiprion clarkii (Bennett 1830), Clarkii or Yellowtail
Clownfish. Indo-West Pacific; Persian Gulf to Western Australia to
Melanesia, Micronesia. To six inches in length. The most variable species
of the subfamily. Blackish to brown body color, third white body bar on
caudal peduncle, white or yellow tail. At right in N. Sulawesi. Below: Juvenile in Queensland Australia,
adult in the Maldives (typical dark color as with most individuals found
with Stichodactyla mertensii), and lastly aquarium image. |
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| Amphiprion fuscocaudatus Allen 1972, the Seychelles
Anemonefish. Dark brown bodied with broad lower golden-yellow areas
including pectoral fins. Three wide body bands. Seychelles, including
Aldabra, western Indian Ocean. To five inches. Found in the wild only in
association with Stichodactyla mertensii. |
No pic (and I've BEEN to the Seychelles!) |
| Amphiprion latezonatus
Waite 1900, the Wide-Band Anemonefish. Dark brown bodied, with three
(especially the middle) wide white body bars. Found only off Lord Howe
Island and the coast near the Queensland-NSW border. This one photographed
at the Birch Aquarium, San Diego. To five inches total length. |
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| Amphiprion latifasciatus Allen 1972, the Madagascar
Anemonefish. Blackish brown body with two white bars, yellow snout, fins,
belly. Caudal fin slightly forked. To five inches in length. Western
Indian Ocean; Madagascar and Comoros. Found
in the wild only in association with Stichodactyla mertensii. |
Got the film, time... |
| Amphiprion mccullochi Whitley 1929, McCulloch's
Anemonefish. Very dark body, white snout and tail. White bar on side of
head isolated by dark area over head. Found only off eastern Australia
around Lord Howe and Norfolk Islands. Photo courtesy of Ryan Dwyer. |
 |
| Amphiprion ocellaris Cuvier 1830, the
"False" Percula or Clown Anemonefish, or Ocellaris Clown.
Indo-West Pacific; eastern Indian Ocean to Australia, to Philippines, to
southern Japan. To a little over four inches maximum length. Bred in
captivity including beautiful northwest Regular and Australian dark
variety mid-juvenile and adult below. Orange overall (except for
melanistic forms), with three broad continuous body bars with narrow black
margins (vs. thick ones in A. percula). |
| There are speculations that the darker above-shaded Ocellaris Clowns
are actually a cross twixt them and A. percula... Hence the common
appellation: "Percularis"... One at right in St. Louis. |
 |
| Amphiprion omanensis Allen and Mee 1991, the Oman
Anemonefish. Cinnamon-colored overall, with two slim white body bars with
narrow black bordering. White tail fin. Found only about Oman in the
Arabian Peninsula. |
Wish the Sultan would sponsor me for a trip, even on his
second-smaller yacht's dingy |
| Amphiprion percula (Lacepede 1802), the
"True" Percula or Orange Clownfish. Western Pacific; New Guinea,
GBR, Solomon Islands, Melanesia. To about four inches in length.
Mutualistic with Stoichactis, Macrodactyla and Radianthus anemones. |
 |
| A nice mated pair of "Onyx Perculas" at Morgan Lidster's Inland
Aquatics. |
 |
| Amphiprion polymnus (Linnaeus 1758), the Saddleback
Clownfish. Western Pacific; Ryukyu Islands to the Gulf of Thailand,
Indonesia. Northern Australia and Solomon Islands. To five inches in
length. Distinctive saddle-like marking on mid-body. This pair in a typical silty/sandy setting in a
Stichodactyla
haddoni anemone (also inhabits Heteractis crispa in the wild), off Pulau
Redang, Malaysia, and in an aquarium. Below, some darker different colored
ones from N. Sulawesi. |
 
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| Amphiprion sebae Bleeker 1853, the Sebae Clownfish.
Dark brown to black, two wide white body bars, the second slanting
backward on the upper flank, extending to end of dorsal fin. Orange to
yellow tail. To five inches in length. Most often fishes sold under this
name in the pet-fish trade are actually Clark's Clownfish. Found all along
the northern Indian Ocean. Below in N. Sulawesi, with eggs and a Haddoni
carpet anemone, and a hobbyist photo sent in for ID. |
| Amphiprion tricinctus Shcultz and Welander 1953, the
Three-Band Anemonefish. Black grading to light brown anteriorly, two or
three white body bands. Dark tails. Found only in the Marshall Islands,
central-western Pacific Ocean. |
Need to sort through my "Clarkii" slides, mmm |
To:
Part 2
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