Phalguni Ranjan
( Amphiprion clarkii )
Inhabiting coral reefs and lagoons at depths between 1-50m.
The stunning clark's clownfish are always found living amongst the tentacles of sea anemones in a mutually benefitting relationship. The fish protect the anemone from predators while the anemone provides shelter and scraps of left over food. These clownfish are quite small growing up to only about 10cm as males and 15cm as females, displaying an oval to round shape.
They are brightly coloured with black and white stripes usually displaying black on the top with an orange/yellow colour on the bottom. Their snout or mouth is a dull orange colour while their tail and side fins yellow. Do wave hello, if you ever come across them!
In terms of their diet, they feed on small organisms like zooplankton, algae and also on the parasites that attach to the anemone.
Vardhan Patankar
( Amphiprion ocellaris )
Living in sheltered lagoons and coral reefs, the common clownfish are always found close to or amongst the tentacles of sea anemones at depths of 15m.
They live in a mutually benefitting relationship with the sea anemones in which the anemone provides shelter and scraps of left over food while the fish protects the anemone from predators. The common clownfish are coloured orange to reddish brown with three white bands on their body which are outlined in black.
The primary source of food for the common clownfish are the various planktonic organisms that reside in the water column such as zooplankton and algae.
Vardhan Patankar
( Amphiprion biaculeatus )
Inhabiting lagoons and outer reefs between 1-16 meters.
Like the rest of the anemone fish live in a mutually benefitting relationship with sea anemones. The maroon fish or spine-cheeked anemone fish are name so because of their body colour ranging from maroon to dark brown couple with a spin poking out of their check, moreover their bodies have three yellow bands on stripes. The females are usually bigger than the males growing up to about 17cm while the males to about 7cm.
Their diet mainly consists of algae and other planktonic particles.
( Amphiprion bicinctus )
You can find them in shallow waters of about 30m, thriving amongst the anemones
Growing up to about 14cm, the two banded anemone fish gets it's name from its distinctive two bands or bars with black edges on its body while its colour from a yellow-orange to dark brown. Like other anemone fish, they can be found in association with sea anemones due to their mutually benefitting relationship where the sea anemone provides shelter and left over food while the fish protects the anemone from predators and parasites as they are immune to the stings of the anemone's tentacles.
Their diet mainly consists of algae and other planktonic particles.
Joydeep Sarkar
( Amphiprion nigripes )
Can be found in small groups on outer coral reef slopes at depths between 2-25m living amongst the tentacles of anemones.
Usually associated with the magnificent sea anemone, the Maldives anemone fish grows up to about 11cm, they have an oval shaped body with a rusty orange shade with a single white stripe just behind their eyes. Like other anemone fish, they live in a mutually benefitting relationship with their host anemone.
They are omnivores and feed on planktonic matter, crustaceans and algae.
Vardhan Patankar
( Pomacanthus annularis )
Found on coastal rocky coral reefs and also in caves and wrecks.
The amazingly coloured bluering angelfish thrive in depths between 3 - 30m. Growing up to about 45cm in length these species of angelfish range in colour from dark orange, brown or violet with blue lines on their body and one blue line forming the shape of a ring near their head, hence giving their common name. In addition, they have two horizontal blue lines going across their face and have a white coloured tail. Juveniles of the bluering angelfish look completely different from when they are adults as they have an almost complete colour change.
Morevoer, they resemble those of the emperor angelfish, make sure to take a closer look to differentiate as the emperor angelfish juvenile have semi circular white lines while bluerings have horizontal lines.
They are most commonly found in pairs and feed on various plankton, algae and sponges.
Jonathan Emmett
( Pomacanthus imperator )
Found at depths between 1-100 m in and around coral reefs.
The emperor angelfish with their horizontal blue and yellow lines as adults are a photographers favourite. They are light blue coloured around their mouth, with a darker blue colour around their eyes, they can grow up to 40cm in length. You can find them most commonly in areas with rich coral growth under ledges and cave like areas a bit more in the open while the juveniles tend to shy away in sheltered areas. Another interesting feature of these species is that when they are distubed, they tend to make a knocking sound.
You are most likely to find them in pairs feeding on sponges, tunicates and crustaceans. They sometimes also act as cleaner fish, feeding off parasites on bigger fish.
Vardhan Patankar
( Pygoplites diacanthus )
You can find them in areas with rich coral cover, lagoons and areas where caves are present at depths from 0-48m.
Growing up to about 25 cm in length, the beautiful regal angelfish is coloured with blue white and yellow stripes that are slightly angled backwards. The fin above the tail is coloured in blue dots, while the fin below the tail is coloured in blue and orange stripes, they also have a brightly yellow coloured tail. They are usually found in pairs or alone as individuals and rarely ever in groups.
They feed on mainly on sponges and tunicates.
Jonathan Emmett
( Pomacanthus semicirculatus )
Found between 1-40m on sheltered coral reefs.
The adults are brownish green in colour, with blue scales giving their body a sort of spotted or speckling in blue. In addition, their whole body has a blue margin except for their one completely yellow coloured fin in the front. Like the other angelfish, they differ in colouration as juveniles and therefore can be hard to determine their species when they are young.
In terms of their diet, they are known to be avid feeders of algae and sponges.
Vardhan Patankar
( Apolemichthys trimaculatus )
This brightly coloured species of angelfish inhabits lagoons and coral reefs and is most likely found between 10-80m.
They are bright yellow in colour and have blue coloured lips, additionally they have a black spot on the forehead with a black magin on the fin near their tail coupled with a faint black band over their eyes.
Their diet mainly consists of feeding on invertebrates like sponges, tunicates some crustanceans, you can usually spot them alone or in small groups in shallow warm waters.
Joydeep Sarkar
( Pomacanthus xanthometopon )
Preferring the outer edges of coral reefs, these speicies can be found at depths of 25m.
The blueface angelfish can grow up to a maximum length of 38cm. They have a yellow colouring over their eyes resembling that of an eye mask along with a network of blue lines with a darkish blue colouring over their mouth and behind theit eyes hence, giving them the name blueface angelfish. Their body consits of blue scales that are surrounded with a yellow outline, therefore showing a sort of pattern. Finally, they have a spot on their fin near their tail.
They are known to feed on small invertebrates, algae and crustaceans.
Phalguni Ranjan
( Chromis atripectoralis )
Found in coral reefs and lagoons residing at depths between 1-30m. You can find them living around Acropora coral branches.
Growing up to a maximum length of 12 cm, these species of damselfish are completely blue-green in colour. Due to their high dependency on coral and coral cover to survive, their presence is often seen as a good indicator that coral reef health is thriving.
They have been recorded to feed on small planktonic particles around corals, especially the Acropora corals.
Evan Nazareth
( Dascyllus carneus )
Inhabits area with coral reefs both nearshore and offshore reefs, always associated with branching corals such as the Acropora corals at recorded depths between 5-50m.
These oval shaped species of damselfish can grow up to 7 cm in length and are coloured white with two vertical bars or stripes, one right behind the head and one at the part where the tail meets with the rest of the body. They have a blueish coloured tail and the fin on the top of their body is black with stripes of blue as well. The lighter coloured scales on their body have blue lines and hence, gives them a dotted in blue appearance.
They feed on various planktonic particles from the water column.
Phalguni Ranjan
( Abudefduf saxatilis )
Found at depths between 0-40 m in and around coral reefs.
These speicies can grow up to a maximum length of 15 cm, they are white with a yellow coloured top potion, they have five vertical black stripes on the body, their name is in reference to this stripes due to its resemblance to stripes from a military seargent.
They feed on various planktonic organisms, small fish, crustaceans and algae.
Joydeep Sarkar
( Dascyllus trimaculatus )
Found at depths from surface to 50 m in around coral reefs. Specifically, you are likely to find them around coral heads or large rocks.
They are greyish-black in colour and have three white spots, two spots on the each side of the body and one between the eye. This resembles that of a domino and hence, they are also referred to as th domino demsel fish. Finally, they can attain a maximum length of 13 cm.
They feed on algae and other planktonic organisms.
Phalguni Ranjan
( Chrysiptera tricincta )
Found at depths between 10-60m in and around coral reefs.
Growing up to a maxmimum length of about 6cm, these species of damsel fish are quite small. They are white in colour with three prominent black horizontal bands on the body. Due to their small size and colour, they are often seen in the aquarium trade.
They feed on various planktonic organisms, small fish, crustaceans and algae.
Phalguni Ranjan
Phalguni Ranjan
( Apolemichthys xanthurus )
Spotted at depths between 5-85 m on coral and rocky reefs.
The Indian yellowtail angelfish has a background cream or whitish-grey colour which is overlapped by a network of dark lines on their scales which create a lattice pattern. The fins on the top and bottom part of the body are black in colour with a white margin. The are named after their tail which is bright yellow in colour and they also have a yellow blotch in the upper area behind their eye. 15 cm is the maximum length that species can reach up to.
They are known to feed on sponges, algae and crustaceans.
Phalguni Ranjan
( Stegastes nigricans )
Usually spotted at depths between 1-12 m in near shore waters often among the branches of corals.
Growing up to a maximum length of about 14 cm, the dusky farmerfish is usually a dark brown colour with the upper parts of their head and body being darker and changing into a lighter colour on the lower parts of the head and breast area. The scales of the fish have a dark brown outline, they also have white coloured lips. An interesting behaviour displayed by this species is their intent to claim a patch of algae which it defends from other fish and sea urchins.
They even go to lengths where if another species of algae grows close to the patch they are protecting, they will pick this opposing algae patch with their mouth and dispose of it in area far away from their territory. They are also known to be very aggressive and might even bite!
They feed on algae, sponges and small crustaceans.
Vardhan Patankar
( Abudefduf vaigiensis )
Found around coral and rocky reefs at depths between 1-15 m. You are likely to spot them the outer reef slopes and also in inshore rocky reefs.
The Indo-Pacific seargent is identified owing to its white body with five black bars or stripes on top of their white-blue body. They are coloured yellow on the top region of their body and back while also having yellow coloured eyes. They can reach a maximum length of about 20 cm. You are likely to find them in large groups.
They feed on planktonic organisms, algae and sometimes small invertebrates as well.
Joydeep Sarkar
( Amphiprion perideraion )
Observed at lagoons and seaward reefs at depths between 1-38 m found in and around the tentacles of sea anemones.
With a body that is pink to peach in colour, the pink anemonefish is one of a kind. They exhibit a white stripe on the head behind its eyes and another white stripe along the top of the body like that of a skunk and are therefore called pink skuk clownfish. These are some of the smallest species of anemone fish growing up to a maximum length of about 10 cm.
Like other anemone fish, they can be found in association with sea anemones due to their mutually benefitting relationship where the sea anemone provides shelter and left over food while the fish protects the anemone from predators and parasites as they are immune to the stings of the anemone's tentacles.
They feed on various planktonic organisms, worms, tunicates and algae. They are the only species of anemonefish that consider alage a primary part of their diet.