The Atlantic Damselfish, also known as Azores Damsel, Atlantic Cromis or simply Atlantic Damsel, is a species in the large clade of Percomorpha and thus belongs to the superclass of the bony fish.
Description
The colouration of the Atlantic Damselfish is usually orange, but can also go into pink-violet. Both the scales edges, as well as the head and fin edges of Chromis limbata are coloured black. The fin edges can also appear bluish. It has a black point at the base of his side fin.
It reaches a maximum length of 13cm.
Habitat and Distribution
Chromis limbata lives pelagic in medium water depth over rocky ground or directly over rocky ground and sea grass meadows. You can find it in depths down to 140m.
When diving in the Canary Islands you can actually observe it at every dive. Chromis limbata is also found in the Azores, Madeira and parts of the West African coast between Senegal and Congo.
Biology
The Atlantic Damselfish lives in loose groups. In the summer, the males look for small areas and clean them of growth and stones. The females are lured to the spawning place by swimming towards them and suddenly turning. If a female is ready to spawn, she places her eggs at the spawning place. They are then fertilized by the male and protected until the larvae hatch. The males regularly wag fresh water to the eggs. The brood care instinct expires about a week after the larvae have hatched.
Chromis limbata feeds on plankton, fish, algae and small invertebrates.