Pink Smith Damselfish School (Pomacentrus smithi)
Pink Smith Damselfish (Pomacentrus smithi) known to tropical fish keeping enthusiasts as Smith’s Damselfish is a Western Central Pacific species found in the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, New Hebrides and the Andaman Sea.
Pomacentrus smithi are a relatively peaceful, non migratory, reef associated midwater species that occasionally make their way into the aquarium trade.
Adult Pink Smith Damselfish are most frequently found on live Acropora coral patches in silty areas of inshore reefs and lagoons of their range where they occur singly, but more often in small to large groups feeding on microalgae and zooplankton above the coral heads at depths between 6 to 45 feet. Juveniles are found in these same areas in tighter groups around the same depths. Some Pink Smith Damselfish species farm patches of algae that they fiercely defend against poachers. With great dedication they industriously tend to their “crops” and eat only enough to allow continual algae growth.
Pink Smith Damselfish (Pomacentrus smithi)
The Pink Smith Damselfish has a shimmering silvery white body color with pink highlights and some yellow at the top of the head and dorsal fin. Individuals from the Solomon Islands have a pinkish orange body color that blends into a purple head with electric blue scribbles above the nose. They have a small black dot on the gill cover behind the eye. Several other variants are known to exist.
Pink Smith Damselfish (Pomacentrus smithi) Solomon Is.
Pink Smith Damselfish are best housed in odd groups of at least 9 or more individuals in a reef or FOWLR aquarium of at least 30 gallon capacity with a sand or crushed coralline 
They like moderate to strong water circulation in the tank and like most other damsels, Pomacentrus smithi are completely reef safe. Some solitary individuals and pairs become territorial when spawning but will generally ignore other fish in a peaceful species FOWLR tank. They will not disturb corals, invertebrates, or other peaceful fish in a reef setup.
Pomacentrus smithi have been bred in an aquarium environment but rearing the larvae is difficult. In their natural habitat, Pink Smith Damselfish pair off and spawn in small groups. Typically a dominant male will claim a small section of the reef where he has cleaned off a rock, shell, or piece of coral on the substrate for the female to deposit her small adhesive eggs. A brief courtship ritual to entice one or multiple females to mate normally results with the female laying a mass of eggs on the prepared nest. The male then fertilizes the demersal eggs and will fiercely guard and aerate them until the larvae hatch out.
The tiny fry in their larval stage will drift with the current as plankton for 1 to 2 months feeding on zooplankton and phytoplankton before settling to the bottom as a developed damselfish. Males will often mate with multiple females in the group during the spawning season.
Pink Smith Damselfish are omnivores that need a varied diet of meaty items and vegetable matter including; herbivore flakes or pellets, live, frozen, or freeze dried brine shrimp, Mysis shrimp
Pink Smith Damselfish (Pomacentrus smithi) are occasionally available to tropical fish keeping enthusiasts from specialty brick and mortar fish shops but more often online from wholesalers, trans-shippers, and retailers at prices varying from $4.99 to $12.00 at approximate purchase sizes: 1-1/2″ to 2-1/2″
Pink Smith Damselfish (Pomacentrus smithi)
Minimum Tank Size: 30 gallons
Aquarium Type: Reef or FOLR
Care Level: Easy
Temperament: Semi Aggressive
Aquarium Hardiness: Hardy
Water Conditions: 72-78°F, dKH 8 to 12 , pH 8.1 – 8.3, sg 1.020-1.0254
Max. Size: 2¾”
Color Form: White, Pink, Yellow
Diet: Omnivore
Compatibility: Reef
Origin: Western Central Pacific, Solomon Is.
Family: Pomacentridae
Lifespan: 5 years
Aquarist Experience Level: Beginner
