''Amphiprion nigripes'' (Maldive anemonefish or blackfinned anemonefish), is a

marine fish Saltwater fish, also called marine fish or sea fish, are fish that live in seawater. Saltwater fish can swim and live alone or in a large group called a school. Saltwater fish are very commonly kept in aquariums for entertainment. Many saltwater ...

belonging to the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Pomacentridae Pomacentridae is a family of ray-finned fish, comprising the damselfishes and clownfishes. This family were formerly placed in the order Perciformes or as indeterminate percomorphs, but are now considered basal blenniiforms. They are primaril ...

, which includes

clownfish Clownfishes or anemonefishes (genus ''Amphiprion'') are saltwater fishes found in the warm and tropical waters of the Indo-Pacific. They inhabit mainly coral reefs and have a distinctive colouration typically consisting of white vertical bars on ...

es and

damselfish Damselfish are those fish within the subfamilies Abudefdufinae, Chrominae, Lepidozyginae, Pomacentrinae, and Stegastinae within the family Pomacentridae. Most species within this group are relatively small, although the four largest speci ...

es.

Description

The Maldive anemonefish is a small

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

which grows up to 11 cm as a female and 8 cm as a male. It is oval-bodied and laterally compressed. This clownfish is characterized by its rusty orange color with a single white stripe running vertically just behind the eye. It has black

pelvic The pelvis (: pelves or pelvises) is the lower part of an anatomical trunk, between the abdomen and the thighs (sometimes also called pelvic region), together with its embedded skeleton (sometimes also called bony pelvis or pelvic skeleton). ...

and

anal fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported o ...

s (hence the common name) and a variable area on its belly can be more or less black. Depending on geographic location, some fishes can be orangeish-yellow with an

which is not black but the same color as the body.Dr Anderson, ''Reef fishes of the Maldives'', Manta marine, 2008,

Distribution

The Maldive anemonefish is found in the western

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...

in the

Maldive Islands The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as the Maldive Islands, is an archipelagic country in South Asia located in the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is southwest of Sri Lanka and India, about from the Asian c ...

Laccadive Islands The Laccadive Islands ( ) or Kannur Islands (formerly spelled Cannanore, ) are one of the three island subgroups in the Union Territory of Lakshadweep, India. It is the central subgroup of the Lakshadweep, separated from the Amindivi Islands ...

, and

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

Habitat

This species typically lives in small groups on outer reef slopes at depths of . It is particularly associated with the magnificent sea anemone.

Feeding

This anemonefish is

omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that regularly consumes significant quantities of both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize ...

, and its diet is based on

zooplankton Zooplankton are the heterotrophic component of the planktonic community (the " zoo-" prefix comes from ), having to consume other organisms to thrive. Plankton are aquatic organisms that are unable to swim effectively against currents. Consequent ...

, small

benthic The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean, lake, or stream, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers. The name comes from the Ancient Greek word (), meaning "the depths". ...

crustacean Crustaceans (from Latin meaning: "those with shells" or "crusted ones") are invertebrate animals that constitute one group of arthropods that are traditionally a part of the subphylum Crustacea (), a large, diverse group of mainly aquatic arthrop ...

s, and

algae Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthesis, photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular ...

Behaviour

''Amphiprion nigripes'' is

active Active may refer to: Music * ''Active'' (album), a 1992 album by Casiopea * "Active" (song), a 2024 song by Asake and Travis Scott from Asake's album ''Lungu Boy'' * Active Records, a record label Ships * ''Active'' (ship), several com ...

during the day. It is a

protandrous hermaphrodite Sequential hermaphroditism (called dichogamy in botany) is one of the two types of hermaphroditism, the other type being simultaneous hermaphroditism. It occurs when the organism's sex changes at some point in its life. A sequential hermaphrodite ...

, which means all fish are hatched as males and later can change sex to female. The males live in harems in which an established dominance hierarchy manages the group and keeps individuals at a specific social rank. It also aggressively defends its

territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, belonging or connected to a particular country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually a geographic area which has not been granted the powers of self-government, ...

and is completely dependent on its

sea anemone Sea anemones ( ) are a group of predation, predatory marine invertebrates constituting the order (biology), order Actiniaria. Because of their colourful appearance, they are named after the ''Anemone'', a terrestrial flowering plant. Sea anemone ...

, which represents its "life insurance" as a safe shelter for the group and for the nest. The associative relationship that binds the

and the

is called mutualism. The fish lives within the sea anemone's tentacles and can use it as a shelter because it has developed a thin layer of mucus which covers its body as a protection against the anemone's stinging tentacles, and the presence of the clownfish can be interpreted as a lure to attract potential anemone prey close to its tentacles; the clownfish can also defend the anemone against some reef fishes which could eat the tentacles, such as

butterflyfish The butterflyfish are a group of conspicuous tropical ocean, marine fish of the family Chaetodontidae; the bannerfish and coralfish are also included in this group. The approximately 129 species in 12 genera are found mostly on the reefs of the ...

In captivity

In a tank, the species can eat brine shrimp, mysis shrimp, and chopped shellfish provided by a hobbyist. Individuals that are tank-raised have accepted high-protein flakes as well as granular foods. The maldive anemonefish is considered mostly peaceful in an aquarium, with some aggression when defending its host. It has successfully been raised in captivity. File:Amphiprion Nigripes in Vilamendhoo Maldives.jpg, ''Amphiprion Nigripes'' with their anemone in Vilamendhoo Maldives

References

Bibliography

* Allen, G.R. 1975. The anemone fishes. Their classification and biology. Segona edició. T.F.H. Publications, Inc., Neptune City,

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. * Allen, G.R. 1984. ''

''. A W. Fischer i G. Bianchi (eds.) FAO species identification sheets for fishery purposes. Western Indian Ocean (Fishing Area 51). volum 3. ar. pag.

FAO The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; . (FAO) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. * Allen, G.R. 1991. Damselfishes of the world. Mergus Publishers, Melle,

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. 271 p. * Balon, E.K. 1990. Epigenesis of an epigeneticist: the development of some alternative concepts on the early ontogeny and evolution of fishes. Guelph Ichthyol. Rev. 1:1-48. * Eschmeyer, William N.: Genera of Recent Fishes. California Academy of Sciences.

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. iii + 697. . Any 1990. * Eschmeyer, William N., ed. 1998. Catalog of Fishes. Special Publication of the Center for Biodiversity Research and Information, núm. 1, vol. 1-3.

California Academy of Sciences The California Academy of Sciences is a research institute and natural history museum in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, that is among the largest List of natural history museums, museums of natural history in the world, housing over ...

. 2905. . * Hardy, J.D. Jr. 2003. Coral reef fish species. NOAA\National Oceanographic Data Center. NODC Coral Reef Data and Information Management System.

. 537 p. * Helfman, G., B. Collette i D. Facey: ''The Diversity of Fishes''. Blackwell Science, Malden,

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

, 1997. . * Jonklaas, R. 1975. Collecting marine tropicals. T.F.H. Publications, Neptune City,

. 224 p. * Kapoor, D., R. Dayal i A.G. Ponniah 2002. Fish biodiversity of India. National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources Lucknow,

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

.775 p. * Masuda, H. i G.R. Allen 1993. Meeresfische der Welt - Groß-Indopazifische Region. Tetra Verlag, Herrenteich, Melle. 528 p. * Moe, A.M. Jr. 1992. The marine aquarium handbook. Beginner to breeder. Green Turtle Publication,

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. 318 p. * Moyle, P. i J. Cech.: ''Fishes: An Introduction to Ichthyology'', Upper Saddle River,

: Prentice-Hall. Any 2000. . * Nelson, J.S. 2006: ''Fishes of the world''. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Hoboken,

. 601 p. . * Robins, C.R., R.M. Bailey, C.E. Bond, J.R. Brooker, E.A. Lachner, R.N. Lea i W.B. Scott 1991. World fishes important to North Americans. Exclusive of species from the continental waters of the United States and Canada. Am. Fish. Soc. Spec. Publ. (21):243 p. * Thresher, R.E. 1984. Reproduction in reef fishes. T.F.H. Publications, Inc. Ltd., Neptune City,

. 399 p. * Wheeler, A.: ''The World Encyclopedia of Fishes'',

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

: Macdonald. Any 1985. .

External links

* {{Authority control nigripes Fauna of the Maldives Fish of Sri Lanka Fish described in 1852 Taxa named by Charles Tate Regan