A mated pair is a dominant female and a smaller male. Platinum clownfish are protandrous hermaphrodites, like all clownfish, so the male will change sex if the female is lost. Breeding them is easy.
Good to know
ORA treats the platinum clownfish's look as a mutation. The finished fish shows none of the species' normal striping, so there is no bar pattern left to grade.
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.
The platinum 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.
Is a platinum clownfish a different species from the Percula clownfish?
No. A platinum clownfish is a variety of the Percula clownfish, Amphiprion percula, and it wants the same tank, water and food as the species.
How was the Platinum clownfish created?
ORA bred it from its Picasso line over years until the white covered the whole fish, and began releasing it in 2009. The foundation is the same 2004 pairing of a wild Solomon Islands male with an onyx female that started the Picassos. It has no counterpart in the ocean.
Why does a young Platinum clownfish look washed out?
It is not finished. Juveniles ship before the look completes, and the black fins develop as the fish matures, setting up the contrast against the white body and orange face that people are paying for.
What size tank does a platinum clownfish need?
A platinum clownfish needs at least 20 gal (75 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.
What does a platinum clownfish eat?
A platinum clownfish readily accepts flake, pellet and frozen foods.
How big does a platinum clownfish get?
An adult platinum clownfish reaches about 3.1 in (8 cm).
How can you tell a male platinum clownfish from a female?
Males are the smaller fish of a pair. The dominant platinum clownfish is the female, and the male will change sex if she is lost.
How does a platinum clownfish breed?
Platinum clownfish breed as a mated pair, a dominant female with a smaller male. Breeding them is easy.
3.1 in (8 cm)20 gal (75 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)
3.5 in (9 cm)30 gal (115 L)75–81°F (24–27°C)
3.9 in (10 cm)30 gal (115 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)
4.3 in (11 cm)26 gal (100 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)
4.7 in (12 cm)30 gal (115 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)
5.1 in (13 cm)40 gal (150 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)