Percula or Ocellaris

[Boris]

I have 2 clowns in my tank and I am sure one of them is a Amphiprion percula but the other looks like some pictures of perculas and also like pictures of ocellaris. What should I be looking for? The picture is of the certain percula, the other is harder to capture on camera.

[Rob]

while most ID methods are anecdotal, they can be helpfull..
its said, but not always true that, Perculas have more black, or thicker black borders and some say there eyes and mouths look different..

now technically, the only sure way to know is the Perculas will have 10 dorsal spines (rarely they will have 9)
and Ocellaris clowns will have 11 or sometimes 12.

the best way to get this, is a close up picture and then count them from the picture. they usually move too much to accuratly count otherwise

[Boris]

I tried getting a better picture of the fish in question, he does not stop moving. At least the other likes to sit in the anemone and pose nicely. So it is hard to tell and as far as counting dorsal spines, not too likely, too small (1 1/2 " ) and too fast.

The guy in question came to the LFS shipped as Percula and the person who selected him for me has been working with marine fish for 3+ years and is working on a degree in aquaculture. But she hedged a little, " I am 99% sure it is a percula. "

It is a beautiful fish, great color so I am not unhappy with it ( I call him New Guy as opposed to the other clown, Little Guy and the chromis, Blue Guy) but if they are not both perculas will they get along when they mature? I am not planning on breeding clowns, I just don't want fin ripping fights. They do a little fighting and have done so for the past 6 months.

[Rob]

fish stores commonly will label ocellaris clowns as perculas and perculas as True Perculas... so hopefully that is not that case and your LFS people know what they have

that said, if they are both small juviniles they will likely be ok.. minor bickering is normal, just continue to monitor them and you should be fine

[dreams]

can anyone tell me what my little clown is...i think she is a perk....also, would it be better to get here a mate now?...i had bought 2, lost one one....she is still a baby

[Rob]

from coloration i would lean towards an Ocelalris, but that's not a sure fire way.

the best way is counting the dorsal spines (which i cant fully make out all of them)
which i mentioned earlier

another great way to tell is by looking at what you paid.
ocellaris clowns usually run about $15 Perculas usually run closer to $30 each

[Amphibious]

IMHO it's Ocellaris.

[ZeroKoolNYC]

I'm not one for identification but I must say its a beautiful Clownfish... that much I can tell for sure.

[dreams]

Thanks guys....they had her as a perc.....she was around $14.....it really doesn't matter to me, i just want to get her a mate

Zero, thanks....i think she is beautiful too

[Rob]

yea, its likely an ocellaris.
most fish store will sell percula clowns and "true" perculas

[Amphibious]

Or even worse is, "False" Percula Clowns and "True" Percula Clowns. When in reality the "False" Percula Clownfish out sell the "True" Percula Clownfish by a large margine because of their availability, as compared to the availability of the "True" perculas. So in reality, "The No Spin Zone", the "True" Percula Clownfish has built a reputation based on the popularity of the "False" Percula Clownfish. We live in a too tolerant world and perpetuate the false naming of things because it's easier to say true or false instead of saying, your clownfish, in all likelyhood based on the picture you presented, is an Amphiprion ocellaris, one of the many popular clownfish often wrongly referred to as the "False" Percula Clownfish because of the similarities between the two closely related species.

So, Dreams, what you have, IMHO, is A. ocellaris, the ever popular Ocellaris Clownfish of which this looks like a fine speciman. Ocellaris clownfish are sold by the millions world wide, breed regularly in captivity and are sometimes referred to as the "Guppy" of marine fish. You could get your friend a mate and it could be either another A. ocellaris or you might indeed find an A. percula that would get along fine with your A. ocellaris. In that event you might even have the unfortunate experience of a breeding of the two. Unfortunate because then you'd have to decide what you'd call the youngsters, "True-false" Perculas or "False-true" Perculas. This world is confusing enough lets do our part in untangling the mess and call our fish by their real name. Be proud to tell everyone, "I have an Ocellaris Clownfish and I just love him because he's so "Perky". That ought to confuse your friends who haven't figured out the difference.

I could drag this dribble on and on but I think you get the picture. You have a very nice A. ocellaris, dreams. Good luck in your reef keeping.

Dick

[Rob]

very well put Dick...
i agree...

[dreams]

lol.....thank you very much, dick......from this moment forward i will embrace my ocellaris-ness w/ pride

as an aside, i always wonder what was up w/ the whole false/true perc thing....i knew one was a prec & one was ocellaris.....but not why people wouldn't just call it what it is

[Rob]

...but not why people wouldn't just call it what it is

ya know i often wonder the same thing..
usually people say its easier..

i find it easier to be accurate when i know the details..
but a common problem is many people honestly don know theres a difference, or exactly what the difference is.

[wildeone]

Can you give my your opinions on what this one is? It really doesn't matter to me, but I just want to know. It's like when someone sells you a loaf of bread, I can eat about any kind, but I sure would like to know what you call it, white or wheat !





One issue I noticed tonight is that I think someone may have chewed a little on his tail, there is a small part on the top corner missing.

The LFS guy I got him from told my daughter she could buy a yellow tail damsel and everything would be ok putting them both in the same tank, at the same time. I hope that wasn't a bad idea.

I can't imagine a hermit, emerald or cleaner shrimp would have done that. He is swimming close to the top corner now, last night and earlier today he was hanging out mid tank and stayed within a 5" by 5" area, which I think it typical.

[fat walrus]

it looks like a true perc to me. i know it may sound silly, but after you've been around, it's just a gut feeling. i didnt even bother to count the spines on that great photography work.

[CarmieJo]

IME yellow tails can be nippy so it is possible that he took a bite out of your clown.

[wildeone]

They seem to be getting along OK now. The yellow is smaller than the clown, but I am told that doesn't matter to a yellow. At any rate, the clown is doing great. He is eating fine and moving around alot.

[Raggamuffin]

Unfortunate because then you'd have to decide what you'd call the youngsters, "True-false" Perculas or "False-true" Perculas.

and why not call it a "Maybe Perculas" or better yet a "Politition Perculas"?

[CarmieJo]

Or PC Perculas