Description:

Clown fish are a speices of very beautiful fish that comes in various colors from yellow orange to red, and usually have white strips on their bodies. It grows to be about 8 cm in length.

Habitat/Care:

Saltwater fishes requires more space and care than freshwater fish. They are not recommended as beginner fishes as a result. For more information on requirements for saltwater fishes, please see the saltwater tank setup. In the wild they all form symbiotic relationships with sea anemones.Clownfish and certain damselfish are the only species of fishes that can avoid the potent poison of a sea anemone

When a sea anemone is not available in an aquarium, they may settle in some varieties of soft corals, or large polyp stony corals. If the fish settles in a coral, it could agitate the fish's skin, and, in some cases, may kill the coral. Once an anemone or coral has been adopted, the clownfish will defend it. As there is less pressure to forage for food in an aquarium, it is common for clownfish to remain within 2-4 inches of their host for an entire lifetime.

Clownfish that are far removed from their parents through captive breeding may not have the same instinctual behavior to live in an anemone. They may have to be coaxed into finding the anemone by the home aquarist. Even then, there is no guarantee that the anemone will host the clownfish.

Diet:

Most clownfish are omnivores. They should be fed a diet of brine shrimp, or chopped shrimp, squid or clams. They will also eat plant matter and can eat flake food, although the majority of their diet should consist of animal protein. They will also nip at algae and plant matter that grows in the aquarium and benefit from live rock growth.

Breeding:

Since these fish live in a warm water environment they can reproduce all year long. Each group of fish consists of a breeding pair and 0-4 non-breeders. Within each group there is a size-based hierarchy: the female is largest, the breeding male is second largest, and the male non-breeders get progressively smaller as the hierarchy descends. If the female dies, the male changes sex, becomes the breeding female and the largest non-breeder becomes the breeding male. The fish apparently form lifetime pairs, exhibit courting behavior, and depending on the size of the female spawn about 400-1500 eggs per cycle

The fish lay their eggs in a safe spot close to the anemone from where they are easily protected, and the parents can retreat to the safety of the anemone if danger threatens. Anemonefish usually lay their nests in the evening after a few days of carefully cleaning and examining the chosen site. Preferred egg sites are flat or slightly curved rocks or some other item the fish have dragged near their nest for the purpose. (In captivity, clay pots and saucers are an attractive choice.) First the female deposits some eggs with her ovipositor (a whitish tube descending from her belly), making a wiggling pass over the surface, then the male follows behind her fertilizing the eggs. After many passes, the nest is complete and will hatch in 6-8 days shortly after sunset, usually on a very dark night. In the meantime, the male is very protective of the nest and ceaselessly fans the eggs to provide proper oxygen circulation, and checks them for any bad eggs, which he eats before they can rot and damage more eggs. Females may or may not help the male tend the nest. At hatching, the larvae burst free and swim up toward the moonlight and the open ocean to ride the currents and eat plankton for about a week, before the still tiny metamorphosed clowns return to the reef and look for an anemone to settle into.

Species:

Amphiprion ephippium clownfish looks very similar to the Tomato and Cinnamon clownfish in body shape, but it lacks the single white stripe behind the eye in the adults. A white stripe may appear in juveniles and a very small white stripe in sub-adults.

Amphiprion frenatus is usually bright red as juveniles, older females will often be mostly dark red or black on the body. Juveniles can often be seen with 2 or 3 white stripes, but it will only have one stripe behind the eye as an adult.

Amphiprion melanopus (Cinnamon) normally has a red face and dorsal fin and a predominantly black body, pelvic and anal fins, and a pail yellow tail. Most have a white stripe behind the eye, but in some fish in some populations the white stripe can be absent.

Amphiprion ocellaris (Ocellaris/False Percula or Nemo) is the most common clownfish in the hobby. This fish is nearly identical to the Percula clownfish (Amphiprion percula) in appearance. The general differences between the two species is the thicker black border surrounding the white stripes on the Percula, and the amount of dorsal spines, Ocellaris having normally 11 and Percula having normally 10. The thickness of the black border can vary on Ocellaris, on some fish it is very thin while on others it can be a couple millimeters wide. The color of Ocellaris is variable, from light yellow, orange, brown, and in rare specimens black (reported to come from Darwin, Australia).

Amphiprion percula The color on this fish is variable from light orange to red, and often with such thick black borders around the white bands that they often connect the white bands.

Amphiprion perideraion (Pink Skunk) is normally a pink color with a white stripe down the back and a white stripe down the operculum (gill plate).

Amphiprion polymnus (Saddleback) is variable colored, ranging from light brown, black, and orange and black. This clownfish has 2 or 3 broad white bands with the middle band starting mid body and extending into the to back of the dorsal fin. The middle stripe often resembles a horse saddle. The black color form of this clownfish is often misidentified as a Black Percula, of which is also a misidentification of the Black Ocellaris.

Amphiprion sandaracinos (Orange Skunk) is very similar to the Skunk Clownfish in color, except that the overall color of the fish is orange, and the white stripe down the back extends all the way to the top of the upper lip.

Premnas biaculeatus (Maroon) is the largest clownfish with females some times reaching as much as 7 inches (16.25 cm). Females of this species are usually a dark maroon red or brown in color while the males are more bright red. This clownfish most often has 3 white or yellow bands. It is often difficult to pair this clownfish. Large females will some times if not often kill a potential mate when introduced to an aquarium together.

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Description:

Growing to about 6 cm (2.5 in) total length, the black window tetra has a roughly tetragonal body shape and is greyish in colour, fading from light at the nose to near black at the tail. Two prominent black vertical bars appear just posterior of the gills.

Habitat/Care:

The Black Skirt tetra is a very hardy fish that is suitable for beginner aquarists. Since it is native to subtropical waters, it will appreciate a lower temperature than what is found in most tropical aquariums. Ideally keep the temperature between 20 and 26° C (68 and 79° F).

A schooling fish by nature, black widows Tetra are best kept in groups of six or more. Due to their peaceful nature, they make an excellent community fish. FishLore noted that Black Widow Tetra sometimes nip the fins of slower moving fish, particularly those with long flowing fins such as Bettas Angelfish. However, when keep in groups of 6 of more, they tend to chase one another harmlessly and leave the other fishes alone. or

The Black Skirt tetras can adapt to a wide range of conditions, but rapid changes and extreme conditions should naturally be avoided. The aquarium should ideally include a lot of large plants.

Diet:

The black widow tetra is an omnivore and will eat nearly anything it can fit into its mouth. Wild Black Skirt tetras are mainly carnivores and feed on insects, worms and small crustaceans. They do however also ingest smaller amounts of algae and plant matter. In an aquarium, it cheerfully and readily accept flake food, worms, and brine shrimp.

Breeding:

To breed the black widow tetra in captivity, the aquarium should ideally be densely planted with fine-leaved plants as the Black Skirt tetra is an egg-scattering species that prefers to release the eggs among fine-leave plants. The male will claim a territory during the breeding period and defend it.

Once the eggs are laid, the parents should be removed from the tank as these fishes tend to eat their own eggs. The eggs will typically hatch within 24 hours. The frys could be feed with egg yolk or newly hatched brine shrimp. As the fry grows larger, you can give them larger and larger brine shrimp.

Disease: