Clownfish Scientific Name?

[Reefland]

Ok, I am completely stupid for not remembering but...

I picked up a pair of clownfish yesterday and for the life of me, can't remember the scientific name of them. I searched around fishbase but had no luck. Here is what I can tell you, maybe you can help me out.

They were listed as Amphiprion laz. I put the laz because those are the first three letters but I can't remember the rest. Now fishbase does not have any species starting with those letters but I am certain this is what was listed.

These little guys are small; 1-1.5" tops. They are very dark in color similar to an adult Percula; dark brown - black. Thier little faces are bright orange and they have very white bands.

Any ideas or help would be appreciated. BTW, they are doing nicely so far. They swam all day yesterday through the current; back and forth. They have even brought the Gramma out of hiding a bit.

Thanks,
Scott Z.

[Ninong]

Do they look like this? (A. latifasciatus)




Or maybe like this? (A. latezonatus)



From your description, they sound like A. latifasciatus but I put up A. latezonatus, too, since they are the only species of Amphiprion that I know of that have a "z" in a species name starting with an "l".

[Reefland]

The A. latezonatus is the closet scientific name I could find on fishbase but the picture doesn't resemble them at all.

The white band around their face wraps all the way around unlike the ones in the pictures. Perhaps this is a characteristic of their size? The middle band has is just the opposite of the A. latezonatus in that the hump of the band faces the front, not the back. Additionally, all of their fins are black and the white bands are not as broad. The orange on their face is about the same size as the A. latezonatus though.

Man I should have written down what was listed at the store.

Scott Z.

[Ninong]

To tell you the truth, I would have been surprised if they were either of those two species because I don't believe either is available in the trade.

It is possible that you remembered the name wrong or that the LFS had an incorrect name on them. I assume you are sure that they do not look like regular juvenile A. clarkii?

[Reefland]

It's more than possible; I did remember it wrong! I just called the store hoping to reach someone (I thought they were closed on Sunday) and I did! He does have them listed as the A. latezonatus which surprises me as well because they do not resemble that picture at all. I know all fish are different but they don't even come close. Fishbase has them listed as a Wide band Clown if I recall and these guys don't match that.

He has had them for about 4 weeks and has 2 more pairs I believe. I was attracted to them because:
1. Their coloration is awesome.
2. They seemed to be pretty aggressive towards the tank mates and I hoped this aggressiveness would warn off the Gramma if he got snappy
3. I knew Michelle would love them!

I guess for now I can only go with the store and say A. latezonatus. Boy I need a camera.

Scott Z.

[Ninong]

Well, how much did you pay for this rare pair of A. latezonatus, if you don't mind my asking?

Here is a quote from Joyce Wilkerson on A. latezonatus:
"Wide-band Clownfish range in color from golden brown to black, with three white stripes. The middle bar is distinctively broad -- wide enough at the bottom to extend from the pelvic fin to the anal fin. This species does best in a cooler aquarium (22 to 25 degrees C), and is not easily obtainable." (P.S. -- That's 71.6 - 77 degrees Fahrenheit)

Besides the very distinctive middle bar, take a low at the very distinctive caudal fin. Do your fish have that sort of coloration in the tail fin?

[Reefland]

Michelle just found a picture that was posted by Tigermad that is an exact match; as far as the look is concerned.

[Ninong]

That appears to be a dark A. percula to me but it could be a Darwin black morph of A. ocellaris. It is certainly not an A. latezonatus.

[Reefland]

Nope, don't mind at all; $55.10 with tax.

I am still not convinced it is the A. latezonatus, all the material I see with pictures just don't resemble them, they look just like that picture from Tigermad.

Isn't it a safe assumption that A. percula don't get that coloration until they are adult, which also means they would be larger than 1-1.5"?

[Ninong]

The so-called black percula, which is actually a black color morph of Amphiprion ocellaris found near Darwin, Australia is black as a juvenile. Mermaid in Baton Rouge breeds them and I have seen them as juveniles.

[Ninong]

If you haven't yet figured out what I am trying to tell you, I am trying to tell you that your LFS is full of you know what.

A. latezonatus has a white face and a very distinctive tail that you are not describing. Also, the wide middle band is very, very obvious. Consider yourself lucky, especially since Wilkerson also says: "Wide-band Clownfish (A. latezonatus): a large, prized species that requires expert captive care."

[Ninong]

OK, out of curiosity, I just checked out Tigermad's homepage: He calls his fish a "black percula."

[Reefland]

Aren't most LFS full of it?

I do feel much better having a better idea of what I have especially since they aren't the A. latezonatus; seeing how they fair best in temps -77 degrees. I do still feel like I got some great fish though. I remember a long time ago seeing pictures of the Darwin clowns being posted and loved their appearance. These guys sure do look nice with their black bodies and orange faces; and I guess now I have a decent chance of them pairing up and maybe even mating!

*Scott is dreaming now*.

So would you be comfortable with saying a black color morph of the A. ocellaris?

Thanks for you help Ninong,
Scott Z.

[Ninong]

Quote: "So would you be comfortable with saying a black color morph of the A. ocellaris?"

If you can get a clear, in-focus picture that allows us to count the spines in the dorsal fin. Ocellaris clowns have 11 dorsal spines, percula clowns have 9 or 10.

[Reefland]

I'm going to have to find a camera, bottom line. As soon as I can come up with a picture, I'll be sure to post it.

Thanks again for your help,
Scott Z.

[Ninong]

Two very different colorations, both A. ocellaris:

[Reefland]

In the past, I had the orange A. ocellaris and really enjoyed them. The color of the black one you have posted looks just like my new pair; except for the black lip.

Where did you find that one at?

Scott Z.

[Ninong]

http://images.google.com/images

I entered: Amphiprion ocellaris

Try it, it's easy. You'll get lots and lots of pictures, more than 100 for Amphiprion ocellaris. It's much quicker than Fishbase, provided you know the name of what you are looking for to begin with. But you have to be able to recognize an error if you see one, whereas you can assume that Fishbase is correct.

[Reefland]

Knowing the name is half the battle, right?

[Ninong]

With most LFS, it's only the beginning of the battle.