Within the depths of the warm and tropical waters of the Indo-Pacific Ocean, swimming among coral reefs and sea anemones, you may spot some bright flashes of orange segmented by three distinctive white stripes – these small, speedy fish are known as clownfish, or anemonefish.
Thanks to Disney’s Finding Nemo, clownfish have been globally popularised. But how much do we really know about clownfish? For example, did you know that clownfish come in colours other than neon orange? There are also red, yellow, brown or black clownfish.
But is it true that all clownfish are born male?
VERDICT:
True
Clownfish are hermaphroditic. While they are all born as males, they also have the ability to become female.
How it works is that in a family of clownfish, there is a size-based hierarchy consisting of a dominant breeding female (which is also the largest), a breeding male (the second-largest) and smaller, non-breeding males.
If something happens to the dominant female, the breeding male will change his sex to become female, replacing her. The largest of the non-breeding males will then become the breeding male.
This approach among the clownfish ensures that there is always a breeding pair within the family.
However, the change is irreversible: once a clownfish becomes female, it cannot turn back into a male.
References:
1) National Geographic | Clownfish Facts: https://www.
2) How do clownfish change their sex?: https://www.thetech.org/ask-a-
3) Sex Change from Male to Female: Active Feminization of the Brain, Behavior, and Gonads in Anemonefish: https://www.taylorfrancis.com/
