The Clown Anemonefish, Amphiprion Ocellaris

The Clown anemonefish, Amphiprion ocellaris is also known as the Common clownfish, False clown anemonefish, False anemonefish or simply "Nemo" from movie Finding Nemo.

FEATURES
the most important feature used to identify anemonefish is its color pattern which is normally bright orange with three white bars. The middle white bar has a forward-projecting bulge while all the bars have narrow black margins. Maximum length that they can attain is 11 cm and they are typically oval, with large rounded fins. All of their fins are orange with black edge.

Most of them can be found in shallow water reefs or sand. However, species like A. perideraion can be found even in deeper water of about 35 m. The Anemonefish are usually common to the Indian Ocean, Red Sea, northern Australia, Western Pacific and the South East Asia region. They could hardly be found at the Caribbean, Mediterranean or the Atlantic Ocean.

SYMBIOSIS
The Anemonefish is one to demonstrate one of nature’s amazing examples of symbiosis, that is, the process where two animals benefit by close association. The Anemonefish have a mutually beneficial relationship with sea anemones which normally has stinging cells called nematocysts attached to its tentacles. These are discharge when a fish brush against its tentacles, thereby paralyzing the fish. However, the anemonefish is at home among the tentacles of sea anemones and even hide there from predators approach. It is thought that this fish have a special biochemical makeup at the mucus layer which provides them protection from the stinging cells. As for the how they can help anemone, this fish can chase off small creatures that prey on anemone, or, these clowns can lure fish for the anemone to kill and eat. One thing is certain – the anemonefish cannot live without the anemones while without their clowns, some anemones are quickly destroyed by predators like butterfly fish and turtles which are also immune to their stings.

SEX CHANGE

Within a group of anemonefish, usually, a large female dominates. The female is always the largest clown, while the rest will have to be males. If the female should die however, the next largest male then becomes the new female. This is a special characteristic of some reef fish species which is actually a common ability. However, how an anemonefish can sex-change from male to female is called Protandrous Hermaphroditism.  All anemonefish are inherently born a male with active male and dormant female reproductive organs. Nature rigs the anemonefish this such that an anemonefish can remain self-sufficient so that if the female dies there is no need to find a new mate.