Fire Anemonefish – Amphiprion ephippium
Species name: Amphiprion ephippium
Common names: Red Saddleback Anemonefish, Fire Anemonefish, Saddle anemonefish
Family: Pomacentridae
Order: Perciformes
Class: Actinopterygii
Maximum length: 4.7 in.
Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
Hardiness: Easy
Aggressiveness: Territorial and aggressive towards other smaller clowns and smaller fish.
Reef Compatibility: Ideal for the reef aquarium.
Distribution: Eastern Indian Ocean: Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Thailand, Malaysia, and Java and Sumatra in Indonesia.
Diet: Omnivorous. Usually accepts flake or pellet foods but meaty foods such as Mysids, Brine Shrimp, Krill, and Plankton should also be offered.
Additional information:
The red saddleback anemonefish, Amphiprion ephippium, also known as the fire anemonefish, is native to the Eastern Indian Ocean where it can be found alone or in couples in silty coastal waters and protected bays where visibility is often reduced.
Amphiprion ephippium is generally associated with the host anemones Entacmaea quadricolor and Heteractis crispa.
The body and fins are reddish-orange with a black spot below the anterior portion of the soft dorsal fin which varies in size, being smaller in sub adults and covering most of the body in mature adults. Juveniles lack the black blotch but have a white bar running just behind the head. This is the only clownfish which has no white stripe at all by the time it is an adult.
Males are generally smaller than females. Color does not appear to be different between males or females. The females are more colorful and more dominant. All clownfish are sexually immature when hatched and the most dominant fish in a group will become a female. The other fish will become males. If the female clownfish died or is removed from the aquarium, one of the males will take over the dominant role and become a female.
Ideally, an anemone should be present in the aquarium, but they can do without. They can have a very long life in a tank with no anemones at all. If a host anemone is not present, an occasional specimen may wallow in the polyps of a large-polyped stony coral, which may irritate them and cause them to close.
Water temperature should be set at 72-78ºF, specific gravity at 1.020-1.025 and pH between 8.1 and 8.4.
This particular species is unique in that it has an intolerance to copper. If copper must be used, limit treatment to two days.
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Article written by www.aquariumslife.com
References: FishBase, Reef Time, Sloreef.com
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