Tomato Clownfish

The Tomato Clownfish, or tomato anemonefish, is a deep-bodied anemonefish (family Pomacentridae) in the genus Amphiprion, native to the western Pacific. Like other anemonefish, it lives in a symbiotic relationship with host sea anemones, gaining protection from predators via a mucus coating that resists the anemone's sting while contributing food scraps and nutrients in return. Adults become notably deeper-bodied and more aggressive than most other clownfish species as they mature. It is a widely kept and bred aquarium species, and wild populations remain common throughout coastal reef habitats in its range.

• Deep, rounded, laterally compressed body, deepening further with age
• Vivid orange-red base coloration in adults, sometimes darkening toward the belly
• Single broad white vertical bar behind the eye in adults (juveniles may show additional bars that fade)
• Black margins along the dorsal, anal, and pectoral fins
• Rounded tail fin
• Reaches 9-14 cm; females notably larger and more robust than males

Distinguished from other Amphiprion species by having only a single white head bar in adults, compared to the two or three bars of many other clownfish.

Tomato Clownfish inhabit shallow coastal and lagoon reefs throughout the western Pacific, including Japan, the Philippines, and Southeast Asia. They are typically found at depths of 1-15 m in warm, sheltered tropical water, particularly around river mouths, harbors, and turbid coastal reefs where their preferred host anemones, mainly Entacmaea quadricolor, are common. They rarely stray far from their host anemone, which provides essential shelter throughout their life.

This species lives in a mutualistic relationship with a host sea anemone, sheltering among its stinging tentacles for protection while providing the anemone with food scraps, nutrients, and possibly some defense against anemone-eating fish. Tomato Clownfish live in small social groups with a strict size-based hierarchy: a single dominant female, a smaller breeding male, and several non-breeding juveniles. All individuals are born male and can change sex to female if the dominant female is lost. Adults are highly territorial and aggressively defend their host anemone. Eggs are laid on a surface near the anemone's base and guarded by the male until hatching.