Four-Stripe Damsel

Care at a glance

Overview

Four-Stripe Damsels are hardy, fast-acclimating fish that handle new-tank conditions better than almost anything else in the hobby, but that toughness comes with a temper. They start out manageable as juveniles and get progressively more territorial with age, chasing tankmates, and sometimes their own group members, away from a claimed patch of rock. They leave coral and invertebrates alone and are a safe reef fish on that front, but they do best with equally sturdy tankmates rather than shy species. Offer a mix of frozen mysis or brine shrimp, flake, and algae-based food.

In the wild

Found on Western Pacific reefs, where groups cluster around a single branching Acropora or Pocillopora coral in shallow lagoons and reef flats. It needs the same setup in the aquarium: a rock formation with real crevices to retreat into rather than just open water. A 110 liter (30 gallon) tank suits a single fish or a small group.

Good to know

Dascyllus melanurus looks almost identical to the Three-Stripe Damsel but carries a fourth dark band that runs onto the tail fin, which is the easiest way to tell the two apart. It lives in the same kind of size-structured group as its relatives, with one dominant individual and a hierarchy of smaller fish sharing the coral head. Eggs are laid on rock cleared near the home coral and guarded by the male until they hatch a few days later.

Did you know

A single coral head can host a whole miniature society of Four-Stripe Damsels, with the largest fish holding top rank and the smallest juveniles clinging to the outer branches for safety.

Related species

• 

  Three-Stripe Damsel

  Dascyllus aruanus

  3.5 in (9 cm)29 gal (110 L)75–81°F (24–27°C)

• 

  Domino Damsel

  Dascyllus trimaculatus

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

• 

  Blue Damsel

  Chrysiptera cyanea

  3.1 in (8 cm)29 gal (110 L)75–81°F (24–27°C)

• 

  Fiji Blue Devil Damsel

  Chrysiptera taupou

  3.1 in (8 cm)29 gal (110 L)75–81°F (24–27°C)

• 

  Neon Damselfish

  Pomacentrus coelestis

  3.5 in (9 cm)29 gal (110 L)75–81°F (24–27°C)

• 

  Green Chromis

  Chromis viridis

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