Did you know that there are about 28 known species of anemonefish? The clown anemonefish is the one we usually think of when we think of these reef-dwelling tropical saltwater fish. The false anemonefish was popularized in the movie, Finding Nemo. True anemonefish have some differences in shape. Clown anemonefish are orange with three distinctive white bars. They measure about 4 inches long, while other anemonefish may reach up to about 7 inches. Clown fish are found in warm waters of the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea, and the western Pacific, including the Great Barrier Reef off of Australia. They are not present in the Atlantic, Caribbean, or the Mediterranean. All clown fish are born as males, and some change to females to become the dominant female of a group. Clownfish were the first tropical saltwater fish to be bred in captivity and are often found in saltwater aquariums. The clownfish has an almost unique relationship with sea anemones. The damselfish is the only other fish that is immune to the sting of the anemone's lethal tenticles. There are two ideas about how these fish can live among the tentacles: one is that a particular mucus protects these two fish species from the poison tentacles; the second is that the fish have evolved an immunity to this poison. Clown fish are omnivorous, eating live food such as algae, plankton, molluscs, and crustacea. They clean the sea anemones of particles that could be harmful to them, and their fecal matter feeds the anemone. The anemones provide a safe haven for the clownfish, as predator fish cannot tolerate the toxin in the anemone.
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