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Variety of Ocellaris clownfish

Midnight Lightning clownfish

Amphiprion ocellaris

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

SaltwaterFish

Midnight Lightning 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 Midnight Lightning clownfish is a near-black ocellaris with thin white filigree. It is a good first saltwater fish for a reef tank.

Did you know

The Midnight Lightning clownfish owes its broken bars to the Midnight side of its cross. ORA reports Midnight offspring ranging from completely stripeless to extreme misbars.

Caring for the Midnight Lightning clownfish

Keep a Midnight Lightning clownfish singly or as a bonded pair in 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 it will often adopt a coral, a powerhead or a patch of rock as its home.

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.

The Midnight Lightning is mostly peaceful and rarely bothers other species. It can be territorial toward other clownfish, though, and 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.

Midnight Lightning 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 Midnight Lightning clownfish differs from a standard ocellaris in pattern and ground color, not in fin or body shape.

In the wild

ORA describes the Midnight, one parent line of the Midnight Lightning clownfish, as a natural mutation discovered in its grow-out systems. ORA selectively bred it from there. Nothing in the wild resembles the Midnight Lightning pattern.

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 Midnight Lightning 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 Midnight Lightning clownfish a different species from the Ocellaris clownfish?

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

What does the bolt on a Midnight Lightning clownfish look like?

A white bolt between the first and second dorsal fin on a near-black fish, usually with a jagged, snowflake-like remnant of the head stripe. Some fish have no third stripe, and some carry a second bolt where it would be, so buy from a photo of the fish itself.

Will a Midnight Lightning clownfish get darker?

Yes. Sea & Reef says early juveniles are brownish and develop deep black as they grow, with the face the last part to darken. Sea & Reef lists the Midnight Lightning as a Midnight ocellaris crossed with a Phantom ocellaris, both captive lines.

What size tank does a Midnight Lightning clownfish need?

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

What does a Midnight Lightning clownfish eat?

A Midnight Lightning clownfish eats virtually all prepared, frozen and live foods.

How big does a Midnight Lightning clownfish get?

An adult Midnight Lightning clownfish reaches about 3.1 in (8 cm).

How can you tell a male Midnight Lightning clownfish from a female?

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

How does a Midnight Lightning clownfish breed?

Midnight Lightning 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