Animal-World > Marine - Saltwater Fish > Anemonefish - Damsels

Damsels - Anemonefish

Goldbelly DamselsPhoto © Animal-World courtesy David Brough

   Damsels are very colorful, but are also very hardy and adapt easily to captivity.

  Because they are so hardy and they are inexpensive, damselfish are often used to "break-in" new aquariums to establish the nitrification cycle. It takes about one fish for every 10 gallons of water to do this.

   Damsels belong to the same family as clownfish but usually the two are separated into anemonefish (clownfish), and damselfish. Some damsels live in a comensal relationship with anemones as do the clownfish. This means they live together, with both the damsel and the anemone benefiting from each others' company. Damsels can be kept in an aquarium with or without an anemone but if you try to keep an anemone you should make sure and meet its special needs.

   Most of the fish in the family Pomacentridae can become territorial (aggressive) when they get older. Among the exceptions to this are the Green Chromis, the Blue reef chromis, and the skunk clown. Damselfish are known to live about 10 years in captivity and 20 years in their natural habitats.

For more Information on keeping marine fish see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Marine Aquarium

Anemonefish - Damsels: Click on the small images below
for more information about each one.

Genus: Abudefduf
Sergeant Major
Abudefduf saxatilis

Genus: Chromis
Black-bar Chromis	Blue-green Chromis
Chromis retrofasciata	Chromis viridis
Yellowtail Blue Damsel
Chrysiptera parasema

Genus: Chrysiptera
Azure Demoiselle	Blue Devil Damsel
Chrysiptera hemicyanea	Chrysiptera cyanea
Canary Damsel	Fiji Blue Devil Damselfish
Chrysiptera galba	Chrysiptera taupou
Rolland's Demoiselle	Starck's Demoiselle
Chrysiptera rollandi	Chrysiptera starcki
Talbot's Damsel
Chrysiptera talboti

Genus: Dascyllus
Domino Damsel	Four-striped Damsel
Dascyllus trimaculatus	Dascyllus melanurus
Striped Damsel	Three Striped Damsel
Dascyllus carneus	Dascyllus aruanus

Genus: Neoglyphidodon
Black-and-gold Chromis	Neon Velvet Damsel
Neoglyphidodon nigroris	Neoglyphidodon oxyodon

Genus: Pomacentris
Goldbelly Damsel
Pomacentrus auriventris

Care and feeding: In captivity these fish will eat almost everything that is offered and should be fed everything like live foods (brine shrimp), algae, frozen foods, and flakes. Some damsels are herbivores so vegetarian foods should be included in the mix.

Anemones:   Anemones need lots of light (2 to 5 watts per gallon) preferably with some blue spectrum provided by actinic light bulbs or higher temperature metal halide lighting. In nature many clownfish will live with the same anemone. Only one clown will be a dominant female and the rest will be male. Usually in the aquarium though, there will be only one pair per anemone.

For information on which anemones should be purchased,
please read the section on Anemones.

References Fautin, D. G. and Allen, Dr. G.R. , Anemone Fishes and Their Host Sea Anemones, Voyageur Press, 1994

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