Most of us are familiar with the common clownfish, but did you know there are many more clownfish types in the ocean?
Clownfish or Anenomefish are ray-finned fish that belong to the family Pomacentridae (damselfishes) and the subfamily Amphiprioninae (clown or anemonefishes). The etymology of Amphiprion is Greek (amphi – on both sides and prion – saw) and refers to its serrate opercles.
They are known for their bright colors and striking bars, hence the name clownfish, and are easy to spot in the reef. They are also called Anemonefish due to their special symbiotic relationship with sea anemones.
Clownfish live in family groups inside their host anemones and are believed to have special mucus on their body, which makes them immune to the anemones’ sting.
Anemonefish hide from predators – octopi, starfish, and larger fish such as Lionfish – in the anemone’s tentacles. Lionfish are an invasive species that share many of the same habitats as clownfish and threaten localized populations.
Anemones are also important in the reproduction of anemonefish, as they lay their eggs under the oral disc overhang of the anemone, which the male of the species then guards.
In return for this protection, anemonefishes keep predators such as butterflyfish away, eat unwanted parasites, and fan their hosts to increase water circulation around them.
Interestingly, all clown or anemonefish are protandrous sequential hermaphrodites, meaning they all start life and develop as males, with the ability to later switch to females. Each family group has a large dominant female, a breeding male, and non-breeding males.
If the dominant female dies, egg-producing cells in the male become active while its testes become inactive, turning it into the group’s dominant female. The largest non-breeding male becomes the functioning male.
There are more than 25 anemonefish or clownfish species, each cuter than the next. In this article, we look at different types of clownfish to discover the ten most striking clownfish and the features that make them unique.
1. Tomato Clownfish (Amphiprion biaculeatus)
Alternative names: Spinecheek Anenomefish, Maroon Clownfish
Striking Feature: Females are maroon with grey bars that can flash bright white if provoked
The distinctive cheek spine extends across the bright white head bar and is the reason for its most popular common name – Spinecheek Anemonefish. It is a relatively large clownfish, from 13 – 17 cm, and the males are usually smaller than the females.
Juveniles and males are bright red, while the dominant female appears maroon to almost black. There are three narrow grey or white bars located at the head, medial, and caudal areas, which run bilaterally across its compressed body.
Spinecheek Anemonefish are diurnal (day active) and can be found between depths of 1-16 meters in lagoons and seaward coral reefs, mostly in protected coastal waters of some of our largest oceans – Eastern Indian Ocean, Northwest, and western Central Pacific Ocean.This spine-cheeked clownfish feeds on zooplankton and benthic algae and calls the Bulb-tentacle sea anemone Enctacmaea quadricolor home.
2. Mauritian Anemonefish (Amphiprion chrysogaster)
Alternative names: Orange-fin Anenomefish
Striking Feature: They have an orange snout with thick, bright white bars, similar to the spine cheek clownfish
This adorable anemonefish is dark brown, almost black, except for its breast and snout, which are orange. The pectoral and pelvic fins are yellow-orange to blackish. The anal fin can be blackish to yellow-orange, while the caudal fin is dark brown or blackish.
Three bright white bars run bilaterally across its body, similar to the Spinecheek Anemonefish, but much thicker. The white bars bleed into the tips of the blackish soft dorsal and caudal fins. Its maximum length is around 14 cm.
The Mauritian Anemonefish is endemic to the West Indian Ocean, specifically the islands of Mauritius, Madagascar, and probably Reunion. They are found in depths of up to 40 meters in lagoons and outer reefs and live in symbiosis with these five sea anemones:
- Heteractic aurora (Quoy and Gaimard, 1833) – Beaded Sea Anemone
- Hecteractis Magnifica (Quoy and Gaimard, 1833) – Magnificent Sea Anemone
- Stichodactyla Mertnsii Brandt, 1835 – Merten’s Sea Anemone (causes color variant)
- Macrodactyla doreensis (Quoy and Gaimard, 1833) – Corkscrew Tentacle Sea Anemone
- Stinchodactyla haddoni (Seville-Kent, 1893) – Haddon’s Sea Anemone
3. Seychelles Anemonefish (Amphiprion fuscocaudatus)
Alternative names: Mauritian Anemonefish
Striking feature: The fish has a unique caudal fin with a dark central base and dark longitudinal streaks that separate and radiate from it.
Seychelles Anemonefish look quite similar to the Mauritius Anemonefish – both are dark brown or blackish with yellow-orange snouts, breasts, and pectoral and pelvic fins. In addition to these physical attributes, Seychelles Anemonefish has a yellow-orange belly and anal fin.
Three thick white bars run bilaterally across its body, but only the white of the caudal bar bleeds into the caudal fin. The dorsal fins are dusky brown to blackish, and their maximum length is 14 cm.
Seychelles Anemonefish are found in the warm waters of the west Indian Ocean, around depths of 5 to 30 meters. Their habitat includes coastal lagoons and seaward reefs, particularly patch reefs, and they are associated with Merten’s sea anemone (Stichodactyla Mertnsii).
4. Wide-Band Anemonefish (Amphiprion latezonatus)
Alternative names: Blue-lip anemonefish
Striking feature: The Wide-Band Anemonefish has a blue mustache
Like the Saddleback Clownfish, the Blue-Lipped Anemonefish is dark brown and has three white bands. The distinctive middle bar is the thickest and is shaped like a flat-topped pyramid. Besides this distinguishing feature, it has a blue stripe, like a thin blue mustache, across its upper lip.
Its spiny dorsal fin can be yellow or brown, the pectoral fins are pale white and all the other fins dark brown. The caudal fin is dark brown but has a broad, pale posterior margin. Its maximum length is 14 cm.
Blue-lipped anemonefish inhabit rocky and coral reefs in the subtropical waters of the western Pacific Ocean, between the east coast of Australia and the islands of New Caledonia.
They prefer a depth range of 10 – 45 meters and make their home in the Leathery sea anemone – Hecteractis crispa (Ehrenberg, 1834). Leathery sea anemones have long tentacles, perfect for hiding amongst a whopping fourteen species of clownfish like to inhabit this sea anemone.
5. Whitesnout Anemonefish (Amphiprion mccullochi)
Alternative names: McCulloch’s Anemonefish
Striking feature: Unlike common clown fish, the Whitesnout anemonefish is almost entirely black
This cute little clownfish (about 12 cm) is completely dark brown except for its white face, caudal fin, and head bars. The head bars are not connected at the top. The pectoral fins fade out into a pale greyish color.
Whitesnout anemonefish inhabit lagoons and rocky reefs with a depth range of 2 – 45 meters. Their depth range and unique features make them relatively easy to spot and identify on a snorkel or dive.
They depend on bulb-tentacle sea anemones (Enctacmaea quadricolor) as their hosts and live in a very small geographic area. These factors contribute to their status as vulnerable on the IUCN red list.
Our next clown is similar to the Whitesnout Anemonefish, but completely different at the same time.
6. Fire Clownfish (Amphiprion melanopus)
Alternative names: Red & Black Anemonefish
Striking feature: Fire clownfish display different colors depending on their region
These little red firecrackers are around 5 cm at first maturity and reach a maximum of 12 cm. They are usually black on both sides with orange-red snout, belly, dorsal fin, and tail, with a broadish white head bar that connects at the top of the head.
The pelvic and anal fins are usually black, and the pectoral fins are usually yellow-orange but are often subject to change. Fire clownfish have a wide geographic range, and their location may result in color variations.
Color variations in animals can often make them difficult to identify, but it is gratifying when one succeeds. In the table below, we explore some of the color variations seen in Fire clownfish and the locations where these differences usually occur.
| Location | Color variation |
|---|---|
| Coral sea | Head bar is completely absent |
| Fiji Islands, Southeastern Polynesia | Completely red except for the brilliant white head bar |
| Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia | Smaller black patches on the sides Yellow anal fin |
| Marshall Island | Pale white caudal fin (tail)Broad black or white posterior margin on yellow-orange pectoral fins |
Fire clownfish have a depth range of 2 – 45 meters and inhabit lagoons and outer reefs. They feed on various types of plankton like algae and copepods and live symbiotically with three sea anemone species.
Its favorite sea anemone to call home is the bulb-tentacle sea anemone (Enctacmaea quadricolor). Sometimes, fire clownfish settle in leathery sea anemones (Heteractus Crispa) and rarely in magnificent sea anemones (Heteractus magnifica).
7. Salmon Clownfish (Amphiprion perideraion)
Alternative names: Pink Skunk Anemonefish, Salmon Clownfish, Pink Skunk clownfish
Striking feature: Pink Anemonefish has a soft white coloration that makes it look somewhat like a skunk
This unique tiny clownfish is pink to pinkish orange, with a narrow white head bar and white stripe stretching from between its eyes, along the base of the spiny and soft dorsal fins, to the caudal fin. This unique feature makes it look like a skunk.
The pectoral, pelvic, and anal fins are usually pinkish orange, while the caudal and dorsal fins are pale white. Adult males have a narrow orange margin on the soft dorsal fin and upper and lower edges of the caudal fin.
Pink skunk anemonefish inhabit the tropical water of the western Pacific Ocean and have a depth range of 1 – 38 meters. They are non-migratory and diurnal and prefer lagoons and seaward reefs.
They usually live in Heteractus magnifica but have also been found in Hecteractis Crispa, Macrodactyla doreensis, and Stichodactyla gigantea (Forsskäl, 1775) (Gigantic seas anemone).
In Bali, they live in close quarters with the Skunk Anemonefish, Amphiprion akallopisos (Bleeker 1853), which also has a stripe on its head. They even share sea anemone homes.
The skunk stripe on A. Akollopisos is much thicker than the one on the Pink Skunk Anemonefish, which is sometimes called the False Skunkstriped Clown or Anemonefish.
8. Australian Anemonefish (Amphiprion rubocinctus)
Alternative names: Red Anemonefish
Striking feature: Rubocinctus means ‘red ring’ and refers to the orange-red band around the circumference of the fish.
Red Anemonefish have dark brown or black sides and a single narrow white to pink head bar, often undefined in adulthood. Its snout, breast, belly, and fins are red and look like a red ring around its body. Its maximum length is 12 cm.
Red anemonefish are also called Australian Anemonefish because they are endemic to northwestern Australia. They inhabit coastal and lagoon reefs and are associated with the sea anemones Entacmaea quadricolor and Stichodactyla gigantea.
A. rubocinctus inhabits shallow waters, making them a great spot for avid snorkelers and fish enthusiasts.
9. Sebae Clownfish (Amphiprion sebae)
Alternative names: Yellowtail Clownfish, Sebae Anemone
Striking feature: Some Sebae clownfish experience melanistic variation, which excludes all yellow and orange color
As explained above, the Sebae clownfish are dark brown to black with two white bars. They usually have a yellow-orange snout, breast, and belly, with a yellow or orange caudal fin (tail).
The soft dorsal fin is dark brown or black, while the pectoral, pelvic, and anal fins are yellow-orange. The pectoral fin often fades from yellow-orange to grey-black. They tend to grow quite large for the species, with a maximum length of 16 cm.
They love shallow tropical waters of the Indian Ocean and can be found in depths of 2 – 25 meters in coastal waters and lagoons. Sebae Clownfish live in Hadden’s sea anemone (Stichodactyla haddoni (Saville-Kent, 1893).
10. Thiellei’s Anemonefish (Amphiprion thiellei)
Alternative names: No alternative name
Striking feature: Thiellei’s Anemonefish are extremely tiny, with a maximum length of only 6.5 cm
This clownfish is reddish-orange with a single white head bar connecting at the top of its head. The soft dorsal fin is also white, and there is a white saddle on the top of the base of the caudal fin.
It is unknown where this species originated, but it is believed to be from Cebu, Philippines. They seem to be unique in terms of their coloration and morphology, especially relating to their low gill-raker count.
FAQs
Do clownfish swim well?
No. It may come as a surprise that a fish is not a good swimmer, but these tiny fish species are not great swimmers. They have out-of-control erratic swimming patterns and risk being swept away by strong ocean currents.
Are all clownfish orange and white?
Not all clownfish are orange and white. This misunderstanding has likely come from popular movies such as Finding Nemo. Clownfish can be dark brown, black, or pink. They can have one, two, or three body bars ranging from white to pink or sometimes seem to shine blue.
How many eggs do clownfish spawn at one time?
Some members of the clownfish family can lay up to 2000 eggs in one spawning – now that’s a lot of clowns.
Are clownfish edible?
Clownfish are way too tiny to consider a worthwhile meal or source of nutrients, with most reaching a maximum size of only a few inches. Most people like to keep them in home tanks and saltwater aquariums.
