Clownfish are among the longest-lived small marine fish kept in home aquariums. Average captive lifespan: 6-10 years. Documented maximum: 20-30+ years for well-kept captive-bred specimens. Wild lifespan: 3-6 years, shorter due to predation by groupers and other reef predators. Factors that move lifespan toward the maximum: stable salinity (refractometer-verified at 1.025-1.026), stable temperature (78-80°F with less than 2°F daily swing), high-quality varied diet (rotate frozen mysis, brine, pellets, nori), QT all new tankmates 21-30 days, and avoid stress from aggressive tankmates. Captive-bred lineages from ORA and Sustainable Aquatics tend to outlive wild-caught specimens because they were raised on aquarium parameters from larvae.
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