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Variety of Ocellaris clownfish

Orange Storm clownfish

Amphiprion ocellaris

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

SaltwaterFish

Orange Storm 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 Orange Storm clownfish reads as heavy, irregular white on orange instead of black and white. It is a hardy fish for the middle of a reef tank and easy to keep.

Did you know

The Orange Storm clownfish's white pattern came along easily in breeding. The dark ground color was the stubborn part of the project.

Caring for the Orange Storm clownfish

Give an Orange Storm clownfish at least 20 gal (75 L), and keep it singly or as a bonded pair. It is reef safe and stays in a small territory around its chosen host. It does not need a live anemone and will often adopt a coral, a powerhead or a patch of rock instead.

Hold 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 Orange Storm clownfish 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. The largest, most dominant fish in a group becomes the female, so she is the bigger fish of a pair.

Orange Storm clownfish are easy to breed. Their species is among the most widely captive-bred marine fish, which is why tank-raised stock is so hardy.

Good to know

In the Orange Storm clownfish, the Storm pattern and the black ground color travel separately. Its spawns still vary in how much white each fish ends up carrying.

In the wild

Every parent behind the Orange Storm clownfish was an Amphiprion ocellaris. It is a captive line, not a wild color form.

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 Orange Storm 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 an Orange Storm clownfish a different species from the Ocellaris clownfish?

No. An Orange Storm clownfish is a variety of the Ocellaris clownfish, Amphiprion ocellaris, and it wants the same tank, water and food as the species.

How is an Orange Storm different from a Black Storm clownfish?

Same Storm marbling on an orange body. Sea & Reef bred the black out by crossing the Black Storm back to bright orange ocellaris over seven generations, and the fish reached hobbyists on December 7, 2018.

Do Orange Storm clownfish all look alike?

No. The white coverage differs on every fish, and some shops sell them pick-your-own with individual photos. The ground color is ordinary orange ocellaris with the Storm white laid over it.

What size tank does an Orange Storm clownfish need?

An Orange Storm clownfish needs at least 20 gal (75 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.

What does an Orange Storm clownfish eat?

An Orange Storm clownfish eats virtually all prepared, frozen and live foods.

How big does an Orange Storm clownfish get?

An adult Orange Storm clownfish reaches about 3.1 in (8 cm).

How can you tell a male Orange Storm clownfish from a female?

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

How does an Orange Storm clownfish breed?

Orange Storm clownfish are easy to breed. Their species is among the most widely captive-bred marine fish, and tank-raised stock is hardy.

Related species