Azure Demoiselle
| Azure Demoiselle | ||||||||||||
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Azure Demoiselle ( Chrysiptera hemicyanea ), female |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Chrysiptera hemicyanea | ||||||||||||
| ( Weber , 1913) | ||||||||||||
The Azur-Demoiselle ( Chrysiptera hemicyanea ) is a kind from the family of damselfish (Pomacentridae). The fish live in lagoons and protected coral reefs in the eastern Indian Ocean , in the waters around Indonesia as well as on the coast of northwestern Australia at the Ashmore and Cartier Islands , the Rowley Shoals and Scott Reef at depths of one to 38 meters. The revier forming fish always keep close to the possible hiding places, most of branched Acropora corals on. They feed on zooplankton , which they capture at a maximum height of 30 to 50 centimeters above the nearest solid surface.
features
Azure Demoiselles grow to be two inches long. The head, back, dorsal fin and flanks are colored bright blue. The belly, pelvic fins and tail are yellow. The body height is 1.9 to 2.2 centimeters. They have 12 to 14 scales along the lateral line organ . The number of gill trap extensions is 21 to 24. It is about 8 years old.
Fins formula : dorsal XIII / 10–12, anal II / 11–12, pectoral 14–15
Aquaristics
Azure demoiselles are popular ornamental fish in saltwater aquariums . They are not as aggressive as other damselfish, do not grow too big, are bright colors, and are also suitable for beginners. With good care, they also spawn in the aquarium. In the meantime it has also been possible to raise the larvae.
Reproduction
The reproductive behavior of the animals is also known through observations in the aquarium. Like all damselfish, the fish are substrate spawners and stick their spawn to the wall in a cave or hidden niche. A clutch has around 1000 eggs. The male guards the spawn and swims into the cave about every two to three minutes to fan the eggs with their pectoral fins. The eggs are transparent and almost invisible for the first two days and, as the eyes of the small fish larvae develop, turn silvery on the third day. In the night from the fourth to the fifth day after spawning, the larvae hatch, leave their hiding place and are initially pelagic . The parent animals usually spawn again immediately after the larvae hatch. After 23 to 28 days, the metamorphosis sets in , as the young fish first get a blue back.
literature
- Gerald R. Allen: Damselfish of the World . Mergus Verlag, Melle 1991, ISBN 3-88244-007-4
Individual evidence
- ↑ Wolfgang Mai: The breeding of the damselfish Chrysiptera hemicyanea . In Der MeerwasserAquarianer, specialist magazine for seawater aquaristics, 3/2006, Rüdiger Latka Verlag, ISSN 1432-1505
Web links
- Azur-Demoiselle on Fishbase.org (English)