Black Photon Clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris x percula)

The Black Photon Clownfish is a captive-bred designer hybrid: a cross between a Black Darwin Ocellaris and an Onyx Percula, first bred and named by Dr. Sanjay Joshi, who the reef world nicknamed the Photon Man for his work on LED lighting. The result is a clownfish with a deep velvet-black body, crisp white bars, and a burst of bright orange across the face, belly, and anal fin. It is hardy, peaceful, reef safe, and just as beginner friendly as a standard Ocellaris. Browse the rest of our saltwater livestock and supplies to build out the tank.

Care Guide

• Tank size: 20 gallons for a single fish, 30 gallons or more if you plan to grow out a pair. They stay small and do not need much swimming room, but stable water volume matters.
• Water parameters: 72 to 78°F, pH 8.1 to 8.4, salinity 1.020 to 1.026. Hardy and forgiving once the tank is cycled and stable.
• Feeding: omnivore, and an eager eater from day one. Marine pellets, flake, and frozen PE Mysis or brine shrimp. Two small feedings a day keeps the color rich.
• Anemone not required. This fish is captive bred and has never seen a wild anemone. It will thrive in a bare reef, and many happily adopt a powerhead, a coral, or a corner of the rockwork instead.
• If you do want a host: a Bubble Tip Anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor) is the classic and hardiest pairing. Give the tank at least six months of stability and strong lighting before adding one.
• Pairing: clownfish are sequential hermaphrodites. Add the second fish while both are small and let the larger one become female. Adding a second adult to an established adult usually ends badly.
• Reef safe: completely. It will not pick at corals, though a settled clown may host a large LPS and irritate it by wriggling in the flesh.

Specifications

Compatibility

Peaceful with almost everything and an easy fit in a mixed reef. Good tank mates include the Firefish Goby, Royal Gramma, Blue Green Chromis, Banggai Cardinalfish, and cleanup crew inverts like the Scarlet Skunk Cleaner Shrimp.

Keep one clownfish species per tank. Two different species, or two unpaired adults of any kind, will fight over territory. Large aggressive fish that see a three inch clownfish as food, such as lionfish, groupers, and big eels, are the other thing to avoid.

If you like this look, compare it with our Black Darwin Ocellaris and True Percula, the two parent fish behind the hybrid, or the Black Ice Longfin and Wyoming White.

Recommended Foods & Supplies

• Piscine Energetics PE Mysis frozen staple
• Xtreme Marine PeeWee Pellets slow-sinking daily pellet
• Vitalis Marine Grazing Pellets
• Green Bulb Anemone or Snowflake Bulb Anemone if you want a host
• Saltwater Refractometer for accurate salinity

FAQ

Mine looks brown, not black. Did I get the wrong fish?
No, that is exactly what a young Black Photon looks like. Juveniles come out brown and orange, and the brown deepens to solid black as the fish matures while the orange stays on the face, belly, and anal fin. A small one is still filling in its color, so expect it to darken over the coming months.

What makes it different from a Black Ocellaris?
The Percula half. Black Photons carry the thicker black bar outlines and the heavier facial orange that Onyx Percula bring to the cross, so the contrast between black body and orange face is bolder than a straight Black Ocellaris.

Does it need an anemone?
Not at all. Captive-bred clownfish do fine without one, and an anemone is a much bigger commitment than the fish is. Add one later only if the tank is mature and your lighting can support it.

Can I keep two?
Yes, and a bonded pair is the best way to keep them, but start with two small fish added at the same time. They begin life sexually undifferentiated and the dominant one becomes female, so pairing works easily when they are young and rarely when they are grown.