How related are they?
Same family, Pomacentridae (Damselfishes and clownfishes): close cousins
They split at the genus level: the Green Chromis belongs to Chromis (Chromises), the Ocellaris Clownfish to Amphiprion (Clownfishes).
Find the Green Chromis on the tree · Find the Ocellaris Clownfish on the tree
Family lines, side by side
Highlighted rows are groups both animals belong to. The marked row is where their lines go separate ways.
| Rank | Green Chromis | Ocellaris Clownfish |
|---|---|---|
| Kingdom | Animalia Animals | |
| Phylum | Chordata Chordates | |
| Subphylum | Vertebrata Vertebrates | |
| Infraphylum | Gnathostomata jawed vertebrates | |
| Parvphylum | Osteichthyes bony fishes | |
| Gigaclass | Actinopterygii ray-finned fishes | |
| Superclass | Actinopteri | |
| Class | Teleostei Teleost fishes | |
| Order | Ovalentaria (unplaced) Unplaced ovalentarian fishes | |
| Family | Pomacentridae Damselfishes and clownfishes | |
| Genus split | Chromis Chromises | Amphiprion Clownfishes |
| Species | Chromis viridis Green Chromis | Amphiprion ocellaris Ocellaris Clownfish |
Care, side by side
| Fact | Green Chromis | Ocellaris Clownfish |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Fish · Damselfish | Fish · Clownfish |
| Care level | Easy | Easy |
| Reef safe | Yes | Yes |
| Temperament | Peaceful | Peaceful |
| Diet | Omnivore | Omnivore |
| Favorite foods | Frozen mysis shrimp, Frozen cyclops and copepods, Enriched brine shrimp | Frozen mysis shrimp, Quality marine pellets, Enriched frozen brine shrimp |
| Max size | 3.5 in (8.9 cm) | 4 in (10.2 cm) |
| Minimum tank | 30 gal | 20 gal |
| Temperature | 72–78 °F | 72–78 °F |
| Salinity (SG) | 1.020–1.025 | 1.020–1.025 |
| pH | 8.1–8.4 | 8.1–8.4 |
| Lifespan | Retail and hobby sources give anywhere from "more than 5 years" to 8-15 years with good water quality (LiveAquaria). In practice many aquarium groups lose fish much earlier to disease and in-fighting. | Typically 10+ years with good care; FishBase records 12 years in captivity. Clownfish are long-lived for their size: the sister species A. percula has been estimated to live about 30 years in the wild. |
| Breeding | Hard | Easy |
| Conservation (IUCN) | Least Concern | Least Concern |