Sea & Reef - Wyoming White Clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris)

At first glance, the Wyoming White Clownfish may look similar to the Maine Blizzard Clownfish. However, the Wyoming Whites are a variation of the Ocellaris Clownfish and the Maine Blizzard Clownfish are a variation of the Percula Clownfish. Sea & Reef Aquaculture is the first hatchery to bring this gorgeous designer clownfish back in production after the original producer, C-Quest, stopped the production of this morph in 2010. Sea & Reef Wyoming White Clownfish are direct lineage from the original Wyoming White Clownfish produced by C-Quest, which is a 100% ocellaris color variant. The Wyoming White Clownfish has a uniform white coloration. Their fins are dark shortly after metamorphosis and turn jet black as the fish grows. Their orange face will develop a beautiful black outline as the fish mature. Some Wyoming White Clownfish have a black spot immediately behind the gill cover (see picture). To the untrained eye, it can sometimes be challenging to tell the difference between ocellaris clownfish and true percula clownfish. The giveaway is their eyes and the number of spines in their dorsal fins (see picture below). The iris of an ocellaris clownfish is typically pigmented with shades of black and grey whereas the iris of a true percula clownfish is typically a clear orange color. The number of dorsal spines in true percula clownfish ranges from 9-10 with 10 being the norm. In ocellaris clownfish the number of dorsal fin spines range from 10-11 with 11 being the norm. Don’t expect the market to be flooded anytime soon with Wyoming White Clownfish.

Wyoming White Clownfish featuresMaine Blizzard Clownfish features

Wyoming White Clownfish early juvenilesMaine Blizzard Clownfish early juveniles

History of the Wyoming White Clownfish

Wyoming White Clownfish were originally introduced in August 2009 by legendary fish breeder Bill Addison, owner of C-Quest hatchery. We have been told that the original broodstock fish was a pair of regular Ocellaris Clownfish that occasionally would produce a few Wyoming White offspring. Only a limited amount of the original Wyoming White Clownfish was produced because a year later C-Quest ceased operation and the production of Wyoming White Clownfish. Sea & Reef Aquaculture is the first hatchery to bring the Wyoming White Clownfish back in production. Reef Builders broke the news in August 2012:

We expect to release the first Wyoming White Clownfish in October of 2012. Our broodstock fish are only producing a small number of Wyoming White offspring with each batch. Please contact Sea & Reef (sales@seaandreef.com) if you wish to be added to the waiting list to obtain this exquisite designer clownfish.

Temperament & Captive Care

The temperament and captive care requirements for Wyoming White Clownfish are very similar to that of the regular Ocellaris Clownfish. It is relatively peaceful and hardy. They thrive in saltwater aquariums with or without an anemone present.

Feeding

Most clownfish are omnivorous feeders, meaning that they will consume a variety of different food types. In nature the diet of clownfish consists of crustaceans (such as copepods and amphipods), algae, polychaete worms, and leftovers from the anemone’s meal. Our captive bred fish are conditioned to eat a variety of aquarium diets including pellets, flake food, frozen Mysis shrimp, and frozen brine shrimp.

Aquarium Host Anemones

Wyoming White Clownfish will readily accept a wide variety of host anemones. As a reference, the natural host anemones of the regular Ocellaris Clownfish are Magnificent Sea Anemone (Heteractis magnifica), Giant Carpet Sea Anemone (Stichodactyla gigantean) and Merten's Carpet Sea Anemone (Stichodactyla mertensii).