One of the more conspicuous groups of fish on tropical reefs is the anemone fish. Anemone fish are
heavily collected for the aquarium trade and have a mutualistic relationship with their host
anemones. However, preliminary investigations have shown that this relationship is much more
plastic than first thought, and may be dependent on the availability of different anemone species
across different reef sites, with dominant anemone fish species being more selective. Further
investigations have also shown that some species co-inhabit single host anemones, but what
dictates this dual association? Surprisingly little research has been carried out that adequately
details the association between fish and anemones and at present it is not possible to identify the
key ecological drivers of the partnership. One project could aim to fully characterize the association
between hosts and fish using snorkelling, scuba or a combination of both