5 Amazing Captive Bred Clownfish You've Likely Never Seen Before!
Clownfish are by far one of the most popular species of fish for marine aquarist. Not only will they add color to your aquarium, they're extremely hardy, they live a long time, and most of them have a very distinct personality and will host with an an anemone or a soft coral in your aquarium, showing us that magical symbiotic relationship we all want to watch.
Clownfish are one of the few marine species of fish that are actively bred within our industry. A few of the aquaculture facilities like ORA, Oceans, Reefs and Aquariums, have crossbred many of these different species of fish bringing us a variety of patterns and colors. These unique fish are called designer Clownfish and they're now readily available to almost every aquarist in the industry. We're going to show you five of our favorite designer Clownfish you likely have never seen at your local aquarium store. And if you have already seen them, you'll likely want to stick around as we have an incredible story to tell you of one of these designer Clownfish.
Just a few years ago, Lightning Maroon Clownfish were one of the most sought after Clownfish and we're extremely rare to find within the industry. Originally from Papua New Guinea, this amazing fish is now being captive bred and it's quickly becoming one of the more popular species of Clownfish for aquarist. Each Clownfish has a one-of-a-kind lightning-bolt like pattern and no two fish look the same. As they get older the patterns begin to intensify and the coloration can even get darker and more vibrant. Lightning Maroon Clowns have a pretty confident disposition in aquariums and they're not likely to be bullied by other fish. If you want to keep these fish, they do get pretty big and will grow up to six inches in length and if you want to keep them you'll want to keep either one or keep them as a pair. If you breed them, you'll want to make sure that one fish is smaller and one is larger.
The Deluxe Clarkii is one of the new designer Clownfish that's now being captive bred and readily available to hobbyists. Originally from the Solomon Islands, these designer Clownfish are becoming very popular due to the striking deep colors they express compared to other Clarkii Clownfish. The deep yellow body color combined with the darker black outlines make it a very vibrant and as they get older the fins actually stay a yellow while the body gets darker. The contrasting colors in outlines mixed with the long fins make this a truly stunning aquarium fish. This was one fish ORA highly recommended to us and it's done extremely well getting along with other Clownfish in our aquarium. While many aquarists think they have seen this Clownfish, they haven't.
Cinnamon Clownfish are very similar looking to Tomato Clownfish. They have a darker black saddle on a red body with a bright white stripe behind the head. They are also often called Black Anemone Clownfish and for good reason. They will often host into an anemone or coral almost immediately and ours didn't disappoint. The Cinnamon Clown immediately made friends with our Clove Polyp Coral and it just loves hanging out in its long tentacles. This particular species is perfect for beginners and advanced to reef hobbyist. They are very hardy, they get along with most other species of Clownfish, and they get more colorful as they get older. The white stripe behind their head will turn a vibrant iridescent color in many of these fish. And again, if you're looking for a Clownfish to host in you're an anemone or your soft coral, this is one species we would highly recommend for you.
Gold Nugget Maroon Clowns are one designer clown you will not confuse with any other type of Clownfish. Originally, ORA began breeding the Gold Stripe Maroon Clowns and one popular variety of offspring was called the Gold Flake Maroon. As they began breeding the Gold flakes, a unique Clownfish showed up in their larval tanks with a white genetic their larval tanks with a white genetic mutation. It was a pure white colored Clownfish they now call the Gold Nugget Maroon. The body is mostly white but changes to a shimmering gold as they mature. Some even have an icy blue iridescent on their edges of the body. ORA has only recently gotten production levels up to where these fish are now more widely available for hobbyists. Like most Maroon Clowns, they rarely get along with each other so it's best to just keep one per tank. This is also one of the largest species of clownfish and can grow up to six inches in length. They have a very, very long life span and some have been known to live in reef aquariums for over 20 years. We've honestly never seen these in an aquarium store but you can find them online through specialty livestock suppliers like LiveAquaria.com.
Picasso Clownfish are a rare variant of Percula Clownfish that actually have a little bit of extra white color on their stripe. They are very rare in nature and many of the Picasso Clowns available to hobbyists today can be traced back to a single wild male from the Solomon Islands which was paired with a typical Onyx female for Percula. These fish are so rare and so unique that when juveniles, they are hand selected and graded as each one exhibits a different color variation. The more colorful and vibrant the fish, the more the fish gets the designation Premium Picasso Clownfish. Like most Percula Clownfish, Picasso Clowns have a great personality and they get along well with other fish making them a fantastic fish for any reef aquarium. As we mentioned earlier, Clownfish are one species of fish that almost anyone can learn how to breed. For those future fish breeders out there, we have a little inspirational story to tell you.
Black Photon Clownfish are a variety of designer Clownfish that were successfully bred and raised by Dr. Sanjay Joshi, the lighting expert. Also known as the Photon Man. While visiting an aquarium store in Colorado, Dr. Joshi noticed two different types of clowns that had been paired together. He purchased a pair and a few years later they spawned in his reef tank and he was able to raise them and eventually they were offered for sale. Having the nickname Photon Man, Dr. Joshi now has a variety of designer Clownfish named after him.
Clownfish are one of the few marine species of fish that are actively bred within our industry. A few of the aquaculture facilities like ORA, Oceans, Reefs and Aquariums, have crossbred many of these different species of fish bringing us a variety of patterns and colors. These unique fish are called designer Clownfish and they're now readily available to almost every aquarist in the industry. We're going to show you five of our favorite designer Clownfish you likely have never seen at your local aquarium store. And if you have already seen them, you'll likely want to stick around as we have an incredible story to tell you of one of these designer Clownfish.
Just a few years ago, Lightning Maroon Clownfish were one of the most sought after Clownfish and we're extremely rare to find within the industry. Originally from Papua New Guinea, this amazing fish is now being captive bred and it's quickly becoming one of the more popular species of Clownfish for aquarist. Each Clownfish has a one-of-a-kind lightning-bolt like pattern and no two fish look the same. As they get older the patterns begin to intensify and the coloration can even get darker and more vibrant. Lightning Maroon Clowns have a pretty confident disposition in aquariums and they're not likely to be bullied by other fish. If you want to keep these fish, they do get pretty big and will grow up to six inches in length and if you want to keep them you'll want to keep either one or keep them as a pair. If you breed them, you'll want to make sure that one fish is smaller and one is larger.
The Deluxe Clarkii is one of the new designer Clownfish that's now being captive bred and readily available to hobbyists. Originally from the Solomon Islands, these designer Clownfish are becoming very popular due to the striking deep colors they express compared to other Clarkii Clownfish. The deep yellow body color combined with the darker black outlines make it a very vibrant and as they get older the fins actually stay a yellow while the body gets darker. The contrasting colors in outlines mixed with the long fins make this a truly stunning aquarium fish. This was one fish ORA highly recommended to us and it's done extremely well getting along with other Clownfish in our aquarium. While many aquarists think they have seen this Clownfish, they haven't.
Cinnamon Clownfish are very similar looking to Tomato Clownfish. They have a darker black saddle on a red body with a bright white stripe behind the head. They are also often called Black Anemone Clownfish and for good reason. They will often host into an anemone or coral almost immediately and ours didn't disappoint. The Cinnamon Clown immediately made friends with our Clove Polyp Coral and it just loves hanging out in its long tentacles. This particular species is perfect for beginners and advanced to reef hobbyist. They are very hardy, they get along with most other species of Clownfish, and they get more colorful as they get older. The white stripe behind their head will turn a vibrant iridescent color in many of these fish. And again, if you're looking for a Clownfish to host in you're an anemone or your soft coral, this is one species we would highly recommend for you.
Gold Nugget Maroon Clowns are one designer clown you will not confuse with any other type of Clownfish. Originally, ORA began breeding the Gold Stripe Maroon Clowns and one popular variety of offspring was called the Gold Flake Maroon. As they began breeding the Gold flakes, a unique Clownfish showed up in their larval tanks with a white genetic their larval tanks with a white genetic mutation. It was a pure white colored Clownfish they now call the Gold Nugget Maroon. The body is mostly white but changes to a shimmering gold as they mature. Some even have an icy blue iridescent on their edges of the body. ORA has only recently gotten production levels up to where these fish are now more widely available for hobbyists. Like most Maroon Clowns, they rarely get along with each other so it's best to just keep one per tank. This is also one of the largest species of clownfish and can grow up to six inches in length. They have a very, very long life span and some have been known to live in reef aquariums for over 20 years. We've honestly never seen these in an aquarium store but you can find them online through specialty livestock suppliers like LiveAquaria.com.
Picasso Clownfish are a rare variant of Percula Clownfish that actually have a little bit of extra white color on their stripe. They are very rare in nature and many of the Picasso Clowns available to hobbyists today can be traced back to a single wild male from the Solomon Islands which was paired with a typical Onyx female for Percula. These fish are so rare and so unique that when juveniles, they are hand selected and graded as each one exhibits a different color variation. The more colorful and vibrant the fish, the more the fish gets the designation Premium Picasso Clownfish. Like most Percula Clownfish, Picasso Clowns have a great personality and they get along well with other fish making them a fantastic fish for any reef aquarium. As we mentioned earlier, Clownfish are one species of fish that almost anyone can learn how to breed. For those future fish breeders out there, we have a little inspirational story to tell you.
Black Photon Clownfish are a variety of designer Clownfish that were successfully bred and raised by Dr. Sanjay Joshi, the lighting expert. Also known as the Photon Man. While visiting an aquarium store in Colorado, Dr. Joshi noticed two different types of clowns that had been paired together. He purchased a pair and a few years later they spawned in his reef tank and he was able to raise them and eventually they were offered for sale. Having the nickname Photon Man, Dr. Joshi now has a variety of designer Clownfish named after him.