Three-spot Damsel

About

The three-spot damsel (Dascyllus trimaculatus) is one of those fish that looks innocent enough in the store tank but has a personality that grows along with its size. Named for the three white spots on its dark body, one on each upper flank and one on the forehead, juveniles are genuinely charming and often found in the wild nestled among the tentacles of large anemones or sheltering around sea urchins and small coral heads. As they mature across the vast Indo-Pacific range, from the Red Sea and East Africa all the way to the Pitcairn Islands and southern Japan, they move onto open coral and rocky reefs and form loose aggregations. In an aquarium, though, the solo specimen is notorious for ramping up territorial aggression as it ages, and a fish kept alone tends to be the most combative of all. They're omnivores that graze on algae and pick off small crustaceans and plankton, which makes feeding straightforward. Breeding pairs are known to spawn on hard surfaces, with males taking on guarding and fanning duties. Beginners can certainly keep this species successfully, but tankmate selection deserves careful thought. Choose robust, similarly sized fish that can hold their own.