An orangefin anemonefish (Amphiprion chrysopterus) swims rapidly into the water column to confront me. This relatively large anemonefish species has fairly wide distribution across the central Indo-Pacific region and is one of the species that's not afraid to vigorously defend its anemone 'turf.' One of the postulated benefits of anemonefishes to some anemones is that they drive away species that eat anemones — this possibility certainly seems likely in this species, Clark's anemonefish, and in the rabidly-defending saddleback anemonefish. (Planet Rock, Madang).
This fairly hefty specimen of an orangefin anemonefish was a bit unusual in that it seemed to feel protective toward members of a nearby anemone (both located on a fairly deep part of the slope of an oceanic reef complex) and rushed from one anemone to the other in response to my movements. This beast actually spent a good deal of its time over the other anemone and engaged in typical defensive moves — making threats and attacking me. The really unusual part about all of this behavior is that the anemonefishes on the other anemone were of another species — the pink anemonefish. (May Reef, Kimbe Bay)
The same orangefin anemonefish hovers protectively above the nearby pink anemonefish colony. The size difference between these two species is quite apparent in this shot. (May Reef, Kimbe Bay)