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\n 22\/02\/2026 – 7:02 GMT+1\n <\/p>\n
Dressing to look more grown-up is a teenage rite of passage \u2013 but humans aren\u2019t the only ones who do it.<\/p>\n
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Baby clownfish have been found to lose their additional white vertical stripe at a younger age when surrounded by older fish.<\/p>\n
A new study from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) reveals how young tomato anemonefish react to social influences within a strictly hierarchical world.<\/p>\n
Clownfish stripes are markers of hierarchy<\/p>\n
Within host anemones, the species typically allows just one breeding pair<\/strong><\/a>, with younger subordinate fish easily identified by their size and one or two additional white stripes. <\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve previously shown that anemonefish count bars to recognise each other. So, we know that bars, the white vertical stripes characteristic of clownfish, are essential in communication,\u201d explains Dr Laurie Mitchell, first author on the study published in the journal PLOS Biology<\/strong><\/a>. <\/p>\n In around a third of anemonefish species, these bars are lost as they transition to adulthood. This is mainly the case in species that reside in smaller groups \u2013 possibly because more pronounced size differences within the hierarchy make fights more dangerous, so visual markers of status are important for survival<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n To understand how and why this change happens, researchers used cameras to observe juveniles in anemones with adults versus empty, fake or no anemones.<\/p>\n They were surprised to find that bar loss accelerated with adults present, despite extra bars indicating a lower rank.<\/p>\n \u201cThis was very counterintuitive at first as we know that the extra bars are used to signal their subordinance,\u201d says Dr Mitchell.<\/p>\n Why do clownfish lose their stripes?<\/p>\n After hatching, anemonefish spend a brief spell at sea before eventually finding an anemone to call home. Their \u2018baby stripes\u2019 could help them to appear unthreatening and avoid confrontation with occupying adult fish, the researchers theorise.<\/p>\n But before new rivals arrive, they may also be eager to cement their position in their new society. This, researchers suggest, could be the reason for losing their stripes early.<\/p>\n