Anemonefish  (Clownfish)

Say “hello” to Nemo’s cousins! These charming fishes are living in close relationship with sea anemones.

Anemonefishes belong to the Damselfish family. In the Maldives are there common two species: 

1. Blackfoot Anemonefish, which is unique for Maldives. It has black ventral and anal fins - hence the name. It is also called Maldivian Anemonefish.
   
2. Clark's Anemonefish.

The sea anemones have stinging tentacles. The Anemonefish is protected by a coating of mucus, which allows it to hide between the tentacles to avoid predators. In return the Anemonefish protects the sea anemone from predators and parasites. 

Most species of Anemonefishes will only live with one kind of anemone. An exemption is Clark's Anemonefish, which can be hosted by up to ten different species of sea anemones.

When you approach an anemone with a colony of Anemonefishes, they will first try to scare you away from it’s territory. They are not frightening at all, so when you get closer, they will hide between the tentacles.

Anemonefishes feed mostly on zooplankton, but they also eat leftovers from the sea anemones and dead tentacles. They can be up to 10 cm in length.