TankBud

Variety of Ocellaris clownfish

Bullet Hole clownfish

Amphiprion ocellaris

One of 17 varieties of Amphiprion ocellaris · See all varieties →

Also known as Buckshot Clownfish

SaltwaterFish

Bullet Hole clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris)

Varieties · Amphiprion ocellaris

See all 17 →

Care at a glance

Temperature
75–82°F
24–28°C
pH
8.1–8.4
Adult size
3.1 in
8 cm
Minimum tank
20 gal
75 L
Temperament
Mostly peaceful
Social behavior
Social
Swim level
Middle
Difficulty
Beginner
Breeding
Easy
Rarity
Very common
Reef safe
Reef safe
Family
Pomacentridae

Overview

The Bullet Hole clownfish is a spotted form of the ocellaris for a reef tank, and a good first saltwater fish.

Did you know

The Bullet Hole clownfish's spots are not added color. They are enlarged, rounded white marks within the barring.

Caring for the Bullet Hole clownfish

Give a Bullet Hole clownfish, or a bonded pair, a tank of at least 20 gal (75 L). It is reef safe and stays in a small territory around its chosen host. It does not need a live anemone and will often take to a coral, a powerhead or a patch of rock instead.

Keep the water at 75 to 82°F (24 to 28°C) with a pH of 8.1 to 8.4. It accepts virtually all prepared, frozen and live foods.

It is mostly peaceful and rarely bothers other species. Other clownfish are the exception, and it will usually harass a second clown that is not its mate. All clownfish are born male, and the largest, most dominant fish in a group becomes the female.

Bullet Hole clownfish are easy to breed, and their species is among the most widely captive-bred marine fish. Tank-raised stock is hardy.

Good to know

The Bullet Hole clownfish is a selection inside existing captive ocellaris lines, not a new cross. Its fin shape and body profile are unchanged.

In the wild

Proaquatix produces the Bullet Hole clownfish in the United States. The pattern has no wild counterpart.

Symbiotic relationships

Clownfish and their host anemones

A clownfish lives inside an anemone that stings and eats other fish its size. Its mucus coat keeps the anemone's stinging cells from firing, and a new fish builds that protection up over hours of brief touches. The fish gets a refuge no predator will follow it into and a nest site at the anemone's base. The anemone gets a guard that drives off the butterflyfish that would graze its tentacles, a steady supply of nitrogen from the fish's waste, and water movement at night, when the fish fans its fins among the tentacles and the anemone takes up more oxygen. Only ten anemone species host clownfish in the wild, and each clownfish species uses its own short list of them.

Captive-bred clownfish have never seen an anemone and do not need one; they settle for a coral, a powerhead or a corner of the tank. If you want the pairing, the anemone is the harder animal by far and goes in first, into a mature tank with strong light and stable water, at the tank size its own profile lists. The bubble tip anemone is the hardy host, and the one most clownfish accept in captivity even when it is not a natural host, so a clownfish profile lists it as the usual tank host where that is the case. The sebae, magnificent and carpet anemones are marked difficult, and the carpets eat fish. Expect a paired clownfish to defend its anemone against everything else in the tank.

Every symbiotic relationship in the catalog

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The Bullet Hole clownfish is a mostly peaceful, social species that keeps to the middle. These picks share a community profile with it, are safe together in both directions, and overlap on water type, temperature and pH.

Check the full mix in the stocking calculator

Common questions

Is a Bullet Hole clownfish a different species from the Ocellaris clownfish?

No. A Bullet Hole clownfish is a variety of the Ocellaris clownfish, Amphiprion ocellaris, and it wants the same tank, water and food as the species.

Why is it called a Bullet Hole clownfish?

The name is literal. Proaquatix describes large round dots in the white bars that usually show the skin underneath, so they look like holes. That is also why the same fish are sold as Buckshot clowns.

What color is a Bullet Hole clownfish?

Anything from orange to nearly black. Proaquatix sorts the trait out of its Snowflake, Black Snowflake, Blacker Ice and Black Ice stock rather than breeding a separate line, so ground color and spot count both vary widely.

What size tank does a Bullet Hole clownfish need?

A Bullet Hole clownfish needs at least 20 gal (75 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.

What does a Bullet Hole clownfish eat?

A Bullet Hole clownfish eats virtually all prepared, frozen and live foods.

How big does a Bullet Hole clownfish get?

An adult Bullet Hole clownfish reaches about 3.1 in (8 cm).

How can you tell a male Bullet Hole clownfish from a female?

Males are the smaller fish of a pair. Bullet Hole clownfish are all born male, and the largest, most dominant fish in a group becomes the female.

How does a Bullet Hole clownfish breed?

Bullet Hole clownfish are easy to breed, and their species is among the most widely captive-bred marine fish. Tank-raised stock is hardy as a result.

Related species