Clownfish Trivia

By Author: Steve Whitehead
Total Articles: 9
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Clown fish are between two and five inches long. They are recognized by their orange scales with black and white stripes. Clown fish are so called because of the way they swim in a 'bobbing' fashion rather than smoothly through the water. Clown fish are a great community fish. Clown fish live in small groups with a well established hierarchy. They live their life in the tropical parts of the ocean among sheltered reefs or shallow lagoons.

There are 28 species of clown fish. The Tomato Clown fish and the Percula Clown fish are two of the easiest and most frequently kept Clown fish species. The name Clownfish has probably been coined due to their vivid colouration and captivating behaviour. Clownfish and anemone fish are fishes from the subfamily Amphiprioninae in the family. They are related to a group of small, brightly colored fish called damselfish. Clownfish lay their eggs in bunches on the coral or rocks that are near the anemones. They are popular in marine aquariums since they are very beautiful and display vivid colours. They are usually quite active fish, which is often mistaken for "clowning around".

Clown ...
... fish live by a mutual relationship with sea anemones, or in some cases settle in some varieties of soft corals. Clown Fish are usually not eaten by other fish because they are kept safe by the stinging tentacles of the anemone. They are the only fish that can live in sea anemones without being stung by the anemone's tentacles. Thus the clown fish are safe from predators and in return they mount a fierce defence in the event of any threat to their host. Clown fish are a series of 28 marine species that can all withstand the sting of anemones.

The male guards the eggs until they hatch 4-5 days later. The male then cares for the babies until they all reach maturity, at which time they leave to find their own host anemone. Clownfish also have the ability to change sex, where the most dominant male will become a female, and can successfully produce offspring. The largest male will be at the top of the hierarchy and eventually morph into a female. The second largest male will form a couple with her and they will breed.

The rest of the males are simply hang-arounds. If the female is killed or otherwise removed from the group, the largest male will turn into a female and the largest of the non-breeding males will become a breeding male. If the male is killed or otherwise removed from the group, the second-largest male will simply take his place and his reproductive system will become activated. If the male is killed or otherwise removed from the group, the second-largest male will simply take his place and his reproductive system will become activated.

Clownfish can be bred in an aquarium, and the offspring have been raised successfully for many years. Clownfish will spawn all year round laying their eggs in large batches.

The anemones eat other fish, and the clownfish feeds on the remains. Some say that they have mucus that covers the body of the clownfish to protect it from being stung. This slime seem to be species dependent, because if you give your Clownfish a new type of anemone in the aquarium the fish will need some time to acclimatize itself to the new species. Rather than being mostly protein-based like most fish, the mucus layer on the clownfish contains more sugar. For some reason, this doesn't trigger the strike of the anemone, possibly because the coating on the clownfish is similar to that of the anemone.
Kevin conducts Party Wall Surveys, and deals with Party Wall Agreements. In his spare time he enjoys scuba and freediving.