Amphiprion ocellaris is perhaps the most well-known saltwater aquarium fish in the world. Many know it simply as “Nemo,” but thanks to captive breeding, the classic orange-and-white wild form is now just one of many different ocellaris color morphs.

The wild form features a bright orange base color and three white vertical stripes, usually bordered by a thin black margin. This species strongly resembles the Amphiprion percula clownfish, and the two are still often confused with one another.

The Amphiprion ocellaris clownfish sold at Korallifarmi are always captive-bred, never wild-caught. The ocellaris was also one of the first saltwater aquarium fish to be successfully bred on a commercial scale. Its long history of captive breeding has enabled the creation of a vast number of different color and pattern variations.

Pairing and behavior

It is best to keep an ocellaris individually or, preferably, as a pair. Clownfish are protandrous hermaphrodites: the larger, dominant fish in a pair is the female, while the smaller one is the male. If the female disappears, the male can change sex and develop into a female. This sex change works only in one direction; a female cannot turn back into a male.

The ocellaris is among the more peaceful clownfish, but it is not always entirely gentle. A pair will usually establish their own territory in the aquarium and may defend it against other fish, especially once they reach sexual maturity and during spawning. Keeping several ocellaris in a small aquarium can lead to the established pair harassing other individuals.

Does Nemo need a sea anemone?

It does not. A captive-bred ocellaris will thrive perfectly fine without a sea anemone.

In the wild, A. ocellaris lives in symbiosis with sea anemones. Its natural hosts are Heteractis magnifica, Stichodactyla gigantea, and Stichodactyla mertensii.

In an aquarium, the situation can be significantly more flexible. Captive-bred clownfish may adopt an anemone such as the bubble-tip anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor) as their host, even though it is not a natural host species for the ocellaris. Sometimes they will also accept an LPS coral, a soft coral, a corallimorph, or even a specific crevice in a rock or a corner of the aquarium as their host.

If an ocellaris chooses a coral as its host, constant rubbing and dwelling within the coral can sometimes irritate it.

Feeding

The ocellaris is omnivorous and usually very easy to feed. Captive-bred specimens are already accustomed to standard aquarium foods.

It is recommended to combine high-quality marine fish pellets or granules with various frozen foods, such as mysis and brine shrimp. Foods containing algae are also suitable as part of a diverse diet.

Spawning in the aquarium

A well-acclimated, sexually mature pair may also start spawning in a standard reef aquarium. The female usually lays her eggs on a cleaned hard surface near their territory or host. The male plays a major role in caring for the clutch: he guards the eggs and ensures water circulation over them with his fins. Depending on the temperature, the eggs hatch after about a week.

However, spawning does not mean that baby Nemos will magically appear in the aquarium. Newly hatched larvae are extremely small, planktonic fry. In a standard reef tank, they easily end up as food for other animals or get pulled into the filtration system.

Raising the fry requires a separate rearing tank and suitable live starter food, usually rotifers. Later, the diet can be transitioned to foods such as newly hatched brine shrimp. Actual rearing is, therefore, a completely different matter than a pair successfully spawning.

Care instructions

Color morphs

All “designer” ocellaris that look different are still the same species, Amphiprion ocellaris. Intensive selective breeding has produced very different colors and patterns, and new lines are still being developed. The names of the color morphs can also be breeder-specific.

Examples of well-known color morphs include Ocellaris, Misbar, Extreme Misbar, Black Ocellaris, Misbar Black Ocellaris, Extreme Misbar Black Ocellaris, Caramel, Snowflake, Premium Snowflake, Black Snowflake, Premium Black Snowflake, Black Ice Snowflake, Gladiator, Premium Gladiator, Mocha Gladiator, Wyoming White, Naked Ocellaris, Midnight, Domino, Frostbite, Black Frostbite, Black Storm, Snow Storm, and Zombie. In addition, Longfin lines are also being bred.