Maroon Clownfish

Care at a glance

Overview

A gorgeous but genuinely aggressive clownfish and one of the most territorial fish in the hobby. A mature female will dominate a tank, harass or kill other clownfish, and bully smaller or peaceful tankmates, so she should usually be the last fish added and never housed with another clown that is not her mate. Hardy and easy to feed, taking prepared, frozen, and live foods.

In the wild

Found on reefs and in lagoons of the Indo-West Pacific, living almost exclusively with the bubble-tip anemone. It is the largest of the commonly kept clownfish, with a deep maroon to reddish body crossed by white or gold bars, and a distinctive spine on each cheek that gives it the name spine-cheeked clownfish.

Good to know

The maroon clownfish is the only species traditionally placed in the genus Premnas (though some authorities now fold it into Amphiprion), set apart by the sharp spine on the cheek. It shows the most extreme size difference between sexes of any clownfish, with a large dominant female and a much smaller male. Like all clownfish it is a protandrous hermaphrodite.

Did you know

The female maroon can reach around 17 cm while her mate stays a fraction of that size, the most dramatic size gap between partners of any clownfish.

Related species

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  Three-Stripe Damsel

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• 

  Clark's Clownfish

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