Clown fish, or also known as anemone fish, are a species of saltwater fish which are scientifically known as Amphiprioninae. These beautiful fish are perciform and also belong to the Pomacentridae family. If you want to expand your knowledge and learn more about the Characteristics of the Clownfish, do not hesitate for a moment to continue reading this great article.
Characteristics of the Clownfish
The clown fish is an animal that is characterized mainly by its quite striking colors, and that also began to be much more recognized around the world after the release of the movie "Finding Nemo", where the main character would be a clown fish
One of the most impressive curiosities regarding this fish is the ability of these to change sex at the time they want, this makes the reproduction of their species incredibly easy and makes the number of clown fish that exist in the seabed not be in any danger.
As we mentioned above, the most noticeable characteristic of these fish is the coloration of their skin, this is orange with vertical white stripes, these stripes are located on their head, on their tail and the other is located right in the center of their body. In addition to this, each and every one of the stripes that it has around its entire body has a quite noticeable black border. Depending on the species, the base color could be brown, pink, yellow, red, and could even be black.
Most clownfish can reach an approximate length of between 8 and 19 centimeters; however, this species is dimorphic, which indicates that the females are slightly larger than the males. Clown fish normally live in shallow reefs, mainly in warm waters, this animal is well known for frequently associating with anemones, which are very present in these reefs. Clownfish use anemones to protect themselves from different predators such as sharks and eels, even though anemones are also predators.
The clownfish to "thank" the protection that the anemone has provided, totally eliminate any type of toxic residue that is found in them, at night the clownfish take shelter in the anemones and then, during the day, dedicate themselves completely to releasing them of any toxic microorganism; It should be noted that these microorganisms are a great source of food for them.
These animals have a mucous membrane which covers the entire length of their body, this same membrane protects them from the poison emanating from the anemones and also from the poison of any species of toxic marine animal. These are reef fish, and when they are in their natural habitat they can be extremely aggressive and very territorial. It should be noted that the character of these fish is quite restless and they tend to show a lot of curiosity about their surroundings.
Commonly these fish live in community, specifically in colonies which are organized in a hierarchical way. These colonies are composed of a dominant female, a female which is usually larger compared to the rest, then we can find a reproductive male and another group of smaller males. Once the dominant female of the colony dies, the male just below her in the hierarchical organization can take her place, change sex and thus increase in size and become the dominant female. Some lower ranking male will take the role of the breeding male.
It is also important to note that the vast majority of clownfish that live in their natural habitat have an approximate life expectancy of about 15 years, however, those that are in captivity tend to live much less, since they can barely reach the 10 years of age.
Types of Clownfish
The vast majority of people in the world tend to think that there is only one species of clownfish, due to the great fame that this species received with the Disney movie, “Finding Nemo”. However, this popular belief is far from reality, as there are actually a wide variety of species of clownfish, although many of these are quite difficult to differentiate from each other. Within this variety of species we could find:
amphiprion ocellaris: This is the most recognized species of all worldwide, well, this is the species found in the famous Disney movie. Its main aesthetic characteristic is its beautiful orange color and its white bands.
amphiprion percula: This is often quite confused with the Amphiprion ocellaris due to its enormous resemblance, however, the Amphiprion percula has noticeably thicker black borders than the previous species.
Amphiprion clarkii: The base color of this species of clownfish ranges from yellow to black; these have two white bands on their body, one that is located on their head and the second at the end of their body. Their tail color tends to be a very light yellowish or white.
Amphiprion akindynos: In the case of this species, it has a rather peculiar color but pleasing to the eye, this color is orange-brown, like the previous species, the Amphiprion akindynos only has two stripes on its entire body; its snout, its tail and its peduncle are completely white.
Amphiprion bicinctus: This is a quite beautiful species of clownfish, the color of its fins and almost all of its body is an orange yellow, like the species mentioned above, it only has two stripes on its entire body. On many occasions, the adults of this species can have a darker color, almost brown.
Amphiprion allardi: The Amphiprion allardi is a species of clownfish that is mainly characterized by having a completely black body and head, it also has two white bands all over its body, although they are usually slightly thinner compared to other species. The tail of this fish is completely white, and as for its snout, its fins and its belly, it is a very intense yellow color.
Amphiprion chrysopterus: This species has a very dark brown color throughout its body, it also has two white bands, but with fairly thick black edges. Its fins, belly and snout are usually white or can even be yellow, on the other hand, its tail or tail fin is always white. It should be noted that the white bands of this fish can become slightly bluish.
Amphiprion chrysogaster: The main characteristic of the Amphiprion chrysogaster is that it has a fairly dark black head and body, and unlike the last mentioned species, this one does have three white bands all over its body. It presents a fairly large contrast, since its pectoral fins, its snout and the area of its belly have a very intense yellow color.
Amphiprion latifasciatus: In the case of this species, its body is quite dark brown, and it also has two vertical white bands. Its fins, its belly and its snout should also be highlighted, which are a very beautiful orange color.
Amphiprion ephippium: The Amphiprion ephippium differs greatly from the other species of clownfish that we have mentioned, the body of this fish is completely orange except for the rear area of its body, in which it has a completely black spot, in many specimens of this species the stain could cover a large area of its body. Unlike all the species mentioned, this one does not have a single white band on its body.
amphiprion barberi: This species differs from the others by having a slightly reddish orange color, in addition to the fact that this fish only has a white band, which is found on its head. Many adult specimens of Amphiprion barberi tend to turn brown.
Amphiprion frenatus: The Amphiprion frenatus is also usually known as tomato clownfish, as its name indicates, the color of this fish is quite intense reddish brown, similar to the color of tomatoes. Like the Amphiprion barberi, it only has a white band located on its head, however, some specimens usually have a second white band in the middle of their body.
Amphiprion mccullochi: This species of clownfish is considered one of the ugliest, this is because its body and fins have a dull brown color which is not pleasant to look at. These fish have a fairly small white band on their heads without black edges, although the youngest of this species usually have two white bands, a very dark tail and the edge of their fins are yellowish.
Amphiprion latezonatus: The color of this species of clownfish is a very dark brown, they are regularly confused with black. In addition to this, they have three white bands on their body; the edge of its back has a yellow color and its lateral fins are quite pale. On its tail it has a white border and it also has a blue line found on its upper lip.
Amphiprion polymnus: Within this species there are two variations, in the first we will find a slightly rusty orange colored fish, only with a white stripe on its head, a fairly white edge on its tail, in addition to also having a white spot on his back; On the other hand, the second variation is almost completely black in color and has three very wide white stripes all over its body, not to mention that it has an orange snout.
amphiprion sebae: As for this species, its color can be very dark brown, or it could be completely black; these have two extremely wide white stripes on their body. On the other hand, its snout, its pectoral fins, its belly and also its tail have a slightly intense yellow color.
Amphiprion akallopisos: Mainly, the Amphiprion akallopisos is quite light orange in color mixed with different shades of pink; in turn, this fish has a fairly fine white line which runs from its head to its caudal peduncle. Its dorsal fin and tail are completely white.
Amphiprion nigripes: These fish are quite beautiful, they only have a fairly small white band on their head and their body is a yellowish orange color. Despite this, its pectoral fins, its tail and also its dorsal fin are completely black.
Natural habitat
Clownfish will always prefer to live in areas with tropical waters, these fish mainly live in warm reefs, located in shallow waters mainly in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. A large number of species of clownfish can be seen without any problem in the crystal clear waters of the Australian Great Barrier Reef, however, unfortunately, it is precisely in this area where they are most at risk of being captured for commercialization, due to that they are considered quite an exotic and beautiful fish. It should be noted that in each and every one of the rocks that are on the seabed there are anemones, which are their main home.
Reproduction of the Clownfish
Clownfish are oviparous marine animals which fertilize their young externally. In addition to this, as we mentioned before, these fish are also protandrous hermaphrodites, this characteristic indicates that each of the clown fish offspring are male, however, they have the ability to become female as long as the hierarchical organization allows it. .
A characteristic regarding the reproduction of these fish is that they are completely monogamous and tend to reproduce when the temperature of the waters increases, as they live mainly in tropical waters, they can reproduce easily at any time of the year. Once they have reproduced, the male begins to create his nest and waits until his partner deposits the eggs to fertilize them later.
Once the eggs have been fertilized, the male begins to shake his fins from time to time to properly oxygenate the egg, he must also take care of completely discarding the eggs that unfortunately are not in an optimal state for hatching. It is important to highlight that for each laying, about 300 offspring can be born.
Once the little clownfish finally hatch, the male and female agree to divide the chores and care of the young equally. Both will protect their larvae and help them feed until they are able to do so without any help.
Clownfish Care
Clown fish or anemone fish are fairly easy animals to care for, however, if you plan to adopt one of these small fish, you must take certain things into account and adapt your aquarium according to their needs.
Aquarius
You'll need at least a 75-gallon tank for a single clownfish, but clownfish don't require a large space to swim, unlike other marine animals. In the event that you decide to adopt a pair of these fish, your aquarium must have a minimum capacity of approximately 150 liters. It is not at all recommended that you mix different subspecies of clownfish, as this could have different negative consequences, however, if your aquarium has a capacity of between 300 and 500 liters, this will not be a problem.
Something very important and essential for the care of a clownfish, is the need to have an anemone in your aquarium, this is completely necessary because our clownfish will feed on it, and also, it can also serve as a refuge . Each of the clown fish that you want to obtain must have its respective anemone, otherwise they could fight to have one. Another recommendation is to decorate your aquarium by placing different plants such as coral grains, these will make the aquarium look much more like its natural habitat.
water parameters
You must consider that the water in your aquarium must have the precise parameters and resemble as much as possible the waters of its natural environment, that is, tropical waters. Adhering to these exact parameters will provide your fish with greater comfort, not to mention making it live as long as possible.
The temperature of the water should be slightly warm, it cannot exceed 27 degrees Celsius, it is best to place the temperature between 24 and 26 degrees. It must have a PH between 8.0 and 8.4, the salinity of the water cannot exceed 1.026, the ammonia level must be at 0; finally, nitrates and nitrites should not exceed 0.2 ppm.
Clownfish Feeding
Clown fish are completely carnivorous fish, their diet must be based on pellets completely suitable for them. Apart from all the food that their anemone already provides them, clown fish usually feed on different crustaceans such as prawns, mussels and squid.
However, despite all this, we cannot ignore that clownfish need a certain amount of vegetable food, these same foods are easily found in high quality dry food, this high quality food can be easily found in any store of animals, we must supply it at least once a day
Endangered Clownfish
Today, clownfish are not considered endangered animals, however, these fish are considered very exotic animals and this has caused their commercialization to skyrocket in recent years, compared to previous decades. As a result of constant hunting, clownfish populations have dropped significantly, however, it is not enough to consider them endangered; Despite this, it is important to be aware of the possible dangers that humans provide to marine animals.
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