Editing Pomacentridae (section)

==Lifecycle==
Before breeding, the males clear an area of algae and invertebrates to create a nest. They engage in ritualised [[courtship display]]s, which may consist of rapid bursts of motion, chasing or nipping females, stationary hovering, or wide extension of their fins. After being attracted to the site, the female lays a string of sticky eggs that attach to the substrate. The male swims behind the female as she lays the eggs, and fertilises them [[external fertilisation|externally]]. Varying by species, brood sizes range from 50 to 1000 eggs.<ref name=EoF/>

The male guards the nest for the two to seven days needed for the eggs to hatch. The transparent [[larvae]] are {{convert|2|to|4|mm|abbr=on}} long.  They go through a [[Marine larval ecology|pelagic]] stage, which depending on the species, can last as little as a week or more than a month.<ref name=Thresher_et_al>{{cite journal | last1=Thresher |first1=R.E. |first2=P.L. |last2=Colin |first3=L.J. |last3=Bell | year=1989 | title=Planktonic duration, distribution and population structure of western and central Pacific damselfishes (Pomacentridae) | journal=Copeia | volume=1989 | issue=2 | pages=420–434 | jstor=1445439 | doi=10.2307/1445439}}</ref> When they arrive at a suitable environment, the young settle and adopt their juvenile colors.<ref name=EoF/>

In captivity, pomacentrids live up to 18 years, but they probably do not live longer than 10 to 12 years in the wild.<ref name=EoF/>