Clown

Philippe BOURJON le 16/08/11

Merci pour la transmission de ces infos très intéressantes. Il y a encore beaucoup à découvrir, et les traîne-palmes peuvent apporter leur écot...

Véronique LAMARE le 16/08/11

Oui, je me suis posé la même question après mon passage à Madagascar et avoir vu ce clown dans l'anémone magnifique et l'anémone à tétines. L'info primaire sur l'unicité d'habitat étant dans le bouquin d'Allen&Fautin 1992,  reprise dans d'autres guides et sites webs, je me suis permise de leur envoyer un mail pour avoir des explications.

Voici la réponse de D. Fautin qui a motivé le commentaire sur les fiches des 2 anémones :
" The records we published were those of which we were aware.  Over the
years, other combinations have been found.  So Amphiprion latifasciatus in
S. mertensii is all we knew at the time of publication of the book.  I
cannot provide for you a personal communication that Amphiprion
latifasciatus is not specific to S. mertensii.  I have never been to
Madagascar; the records in the book are those of Dr. Allen (to whom I am
copying this message), myself, and other observers.  You have found and
have photographic evidence of the occurrence of Amphiprion
latifasciatus with anemones of species other than S. mertensii.  This is
part of the on-going documentation of this phenomenon with empirical data.

In some places where multiple species of anemonefishes occur, fish of
one species occur in all specimens of a particular species of anemone, but
in near-by places where the same species of anemones occur but fish of
that species are absent, fish of the other species will occupy the anemone
in which they never occur where the other species of fish is present.
That is because of competition for anemones of particularly desirable
species (desirability being defined operationally).  Entacmaea quadricolor
and Heteractis magnifica are two of the most desirable species of anemones
and it is related, I believe, to their vulnerability to predation in
individuals lacking anemonefish symbionts.

We discuss such competition in the book, as well as the fact that an
occasional fish is found in an anemone other than the ones in which we
know it normally occurs.  It is true, however, that fish of certain
species always occur with anemones of certain species, even in places
where anemones of other species are common and available.  So some
combinations of fish and anemone never occur."

Philippe BOURJON le 16/08/11

Sur la fiche de Stichodactyla mertensii, je vois en légende de la photo la représentant avec Amphiprion latifasciatus qu'il est réputé n'être associé qu'avec elle, mais qu'il a aussi été observé avec d'autres espèces : possible d'avoir des précisions?