Blue Chromis

Care at a glance

Overview

Keep a shoal of five or more in a 200 litre or larger tank with open swimming water and steady flow at 23 to 27 C. It is peaceful and reef safe, making it one of the better open-water schooling choices for a reef. Feed frequent small meals of mysis, enriched brine, flake and pellets. A tight group looks best, and keeping several helps spread out any minor squabbling.

In the wild

The blue chromis is a slender bright blue fish that hovers in loose shoals above Caribbean reef slopes, feeding on plankton in the current. It is peaceful and adds constant movement in open water. Unlike territorial damsels it relies on the group and open space rather than a rock hole. It holds its vivid blue in good conditions.

Good to know

Chromis cyanea reaches about 13 cm and is the Atlantic counterpart to the many blue-green Chromis of the Pacific. It is a planktivore that feeds up in the water column. Damselfish in the genus Chromis are among the most abundant fish on many reefs.

Did you know

A shoal of blue chromis drifting over the rockwork is one of the simplest ways to add steady movement to a reef display.

Related species

• 

  Blue-Green Chromis

  Chromis atripectoralis

  4.7 in (12 cm)30 gal (115 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)

• 

  Green Chromis

  Chromis viridis

  3.1 in (8 cm)30 gal (115 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)

• 

  Saddleback Clownfish

  Amphiprion polymnus

  5.1 in (13 cm)40 gal (150 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)

• 

  Clark's Clownfish

  Amphiprion clarkii

  5.5 in (14 cm)30 gal (115 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)

• 

  Domino Damsel

  Dascyllus trimaculatus

  5.5 in (14 cm)55 gal (210 L)75–81°F (24–27°C)

• 

  Orange Skunk Clownfish

  Amphiprion sandaracinos

  5.5 in (14 cm)30 gal (115 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)