Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Cirque de sous-mer



Ask anyone if they know a fish and they will answer you "Clowwnfish!". Or as a matter of fact: "Nemo!". 
Nemo seems to be the official alter ego of clownfish nowadays. I must admit, the beautiful Amphiprion ocellaris, as it's officially namedstill is one of my favorite marine fish. Kept them for many years and even have been able to breed them myself. 

Clownfish are one of the marine fish which are commercially bred. More and more species are being bred in captivity, which is good. But the clownfish have become the 'guppies of the sea'. Breeders have taken advantage of the natural diversity of the funny clowns, so now the anemonefish are available in a large variety of colors. We've got snowflakes, misbars, goldflakes, platinums and even Picasso clownfish. 

No doubt about the role of Picasso in art history, but he cannot compete with the inventivity of M.C. Escher. No breeder will be able to create a real life version of my image of an 'Escher Clownfish'...  

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