Blennies - Marine fish

Blennies - Marine fish are popular aquarium fish, and for good reason. They are peaceful, colorful, and many are downright helpful. For example, the aptly named Lawnmower Blenny will keep your green algae well trimmed and presentable. With the exception of Fang Blennies, Blennies are totally reef safe- in fact a reef environment is really best for them because they can be shy and the intricate rockwork of a reef provides ample hiding spaces. They are omnivores and should be fed a varied diet of frozen or live foods and plant matter. Blennies do not have teeth or functional jaw, so food must be small enough for them to swallow whole.
Blennies are often confused with Gobies, but there is an easy way to tell the difference. Gobies have two distinct dorsal fins, Blennies have a single dorsal fin that runs the length of their body. Also, Gobies' pelvic fins are fused to form a sucker, similar to Remoras.

Popular name	Scientific Name	Description	Max size (cm)
Spinyhead blenny	Acanthemblemaria spinosa	Brown checkered body with distinctive yellow frills on head.	2
Bicolor blenny	Ecsenius bicolor	Characterized by the striking contrast of a blue head and upper torso followed by a yellow orange lower torso.	11
Black combtooth blenny	Ecsenius namiyei		10
Blackline fang blenny	Meiacanthus nigrolineatus	Yellow bodied with bright blue mask and dark black line running from the eye to the caudal fin.	9
Black sailfin blenny	Atrosalarias fuscus		10
Blue & gold blenny	Enchelyurus flavipes		5
Bundoon blenny	Meiacanthus bundoon	Black with lighter patch over caudal fin. Very distinctive swallowtail caudal fin.	8
Canary fang blenny	Meiacanthus oualanensis	Similarly shaped to M. bundoon, but canary yellow.	5
Diamond blenny	Malacoctenus boehlkei	Gray with black splotches, and a yellow mask. Shaped more like hawkfish than a blenny.	6.5
Ember blenny	Cirripectes stigmaticus		12
Lawnmower blenny	Salarias fasciatus	Tan and brown striped and spotted with iridescence. Requires Mature Tank.	14
Linear blenny	Ecsenius lineatus		9
Midas blenny	Ecsenius midas	Although often seen yellow, this fish has the ability to change its color to match the surroundings. It has a very distinctive swallowtail shaped caudal fin.	13
Molly Miller blenny	Scartella cristata	Mottled tan, white, and black covering the body and fins.	12 )
One spot blenny	Crossosalarias macrospilus		10
Red lip blenny	Ophioblennius atlanticus	Black to grayish yellow with red patch over mouth.	19
Red Sea mimic blenny	Ecsenius gravieri	Sky blue anterior fading to yellow towards the tail, with a black stripe running the eye to the base of the caudal fin.	8
Sailfin blenny	Emblemaria pandionis	Very similar to Salarias fasciatus but slightly darker and with a much larger dorsal fin.	5
Segmented sailfin blenny	Salarias segmentatus		10
Starry blenny	Salarias ramosus		14
Striped blenny	Meiacanthus grammistes		12
Tail spot blenny	Ecsenius stigmatura	Drab tan all over with dark spot at the base of the caudal fin and a light yellow line through eye.	6
Two-spot blenny	Ecsenius bimaculatus	The top half of this fish is black towards the front and fades to white closer to the tail. The bottom half is white with two distinctive black spots right under the pectoral fins.	4.5
Convict blenny	Pholidichthys leucotaenia	Not actually a blenny but from closely related family Pholidichthys. Juvenile has black eel-shaped body with a distinctive white stripe running down the body. Adults are yellow and black striped.	34

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Batfish - Marine Fish

Batfish - Marine Fish are gorgeous and striking fish that are not common in aquaria for one major reason: they get huge. A two or three hundred gallon tank is needed for one, minimum, and larger is better. They start out as tiny, manageable-looking cuties, which often fools aquarists into purchasing them for their small aquariums. However they quickly grow to gargantuan proportions, and require large amounts of food as well as space, so beware. They are not reef safe and should be fed plenty of large meaty foods. Batfish change greatly as they grow, however the potential aquarist is most likely to see them in their juvenile form, so that is the description of the colouration here. They all have generally the same body shape: disk-like with tall dorsal and anal fins, similar to a Freshwater Angelfish.

Popular name	Scientific Name	Description	Max size (cm)
Orbiculate batfish	Platax orbicularis	Brown with generally random black markings resembling a rotting leaf.	50
Dusky batfish	Platax pinnatus	Dark black body completely edged by distinctive yellow and orange.	45
Teira batfish	Platax teira	Silver with black fins and a black stripe across the face.	70

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Ballets And Assesors

Basslets and Assessors are small, long bodied fish strongly resembling Anthias. Their care requirements, however, are closer to those of damsels. They should be kept individually, and generally not with other fish of similar shape and colour. Feeding is easy: they will generally eat any meaty foods offered. Good water quality should be maintained at all times.

Common Name	Taxonomy	Description	Max Size
Black cap gramma	Gramma melacara	Purple with a black mask beginning at the mouth and ending at the base of the dorsal fin.	6 cm
Blue assessor	Assessor macneilli	Entirely navy blue with white edging of the dorsal fin.	7 cm
Royal gramma	Gramma loreto	Purple head and anterior, abruptly changing to yellow about halfway down the body. Has black marking through eye and another on the dorsal fin. Do not confuse with the Brazilian Gramma or the Bicolor Dottyback.	5 cm
Brazilian gramma	Gramma brasiliensis	Very similar to the royal gramma, however the change from purple to yellow occurs farther down the body and the black markings are absent	6 cm
Yellow assessor	Assessor flavissimus	Bright lemon yellow with peach fringing of the dorsal fin and around the eye.	7 cm

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Clownfish

Clownfish, more technically known as Anemonefish, are the classic aquarium fish. Both hardy and attractive, they are perhaps best known for their symbiotic relationship with Sea Anemones, a relative of coral. In the wild, Anemonefish are always found with a host, leading many potential keepers to believe that an anemone is necessary to keep them. Anemonefish are easy to keep, but their cnidarian counterparts are inordinately finicky and need high light levels, and luckily Anemonefish will thrive without them. Aquarists often find that Anemonefish will host in other things, from corals and Feather Duster Worms to powerheads and other equipment. Anemonefish care is identical to that of Damselfish, as they are actually very closely related.

Common name	Scientific name	Description	Max. size
Cinnamon anemonefish	Amphiprion melanopus	Dark orange body becoming black towards the caudal fin, with a bright white stripe running from the front of the dorsal fin to the pectoral fins and golden colored fins.	12 cm (4.72 in)
Clarkii anemonefish	Amphiprion clarkii	Black or dark brown with bright yellow finnage and two thick white stripes running perpendicular to the body.	15 cm (5.9 in)
Ocellaris	Amphiprion ocellaris	Bright orange or yellow body with white stripes. Fins are orange, rimmed with black. A. ocellaris from northern Australia are black.	11 cm (4.3 in)
Maroon clownfish	Premnas biaculeatus	Maroon to bright red with three very thin white stripes.	17 cm (6.7 in)
True Percula	Amphiprion percula	Nearly identical to A. ocellaris, but the white stripes are edged with black.	11 cm (4.3 in)
Pink skunk anemonefish	Amphiprion perideraion	Pink to orange body with one white stripe over the operculum and another running from the tip of the snout, along the back to the dorsal fin. All fins are white.	10 cm (3.9 in)
Tomato clownfish	Amphiprion frenatus	Bright red with a single white stripe running from the front of the dorsal fin to the bottom of the head.	14 cm (5.1 in)
Saddleback anemonefish	Amphiprion polymnus	Similar to A. ocellaris and percula, but the second stripe does not extend the full with of the body and instead resembles a saddle.	13 cm (5.1 in)
Sebae anemonefish	Amphiprion sebae	Black or dark brown body from above the pectoral fin, yellow below. Has two white stripes, the second resembling that of A. polymnus.	16 cm ( in)

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