Identifying and recognizing fishes

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Identifying fishes Identifying turtles Common reef fishes Venomous species

Identifying fishes
A knowledge and appreciation of
coral reef fishes will help make
your underwater experience much
safer, educational, exciting and
enjoyable.

How to identify fishes

Body shape and profile
Markings and body patterns
Mouth, fin and tail shapes
Habitat and behaviour
Distinguishing look-alikes

 
How to identify fishes

The diagram above shows the different parts of a fish commonly used in
fish identification. The next time you look at fishes, observe how these
parts differ across fish species. Different species have different sizes,
different body, mouth, fin and tail shapes, different number of dorsal fins
as well as different colours and markings on their bodies. Pay attention
also to the habitat or surroundings where the fish lives, like coral areas,
crevices and holes or sandy bottoms. Observe its behaviour, whether it is
lying still on the seabed, swimming freely individually or in schools, and
the company it keeps. Even if you do not recognize the fish, taking note
of these characteristics will help you identify it later when you are
thumbing through fish reference books.

Note that the young (juvenile) of some fish species like the batfish and
sweetlips may look different from the adults. Some fishes also mimic
other species, like the bluestriped fangtooth blenny mimicking the
cleaner wrasse, which make identification more difficult.

 
Body shape and profile

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Identifying and recognizing fishes

The simplest way to identify fishes is by their physical shape and

appearance. Everyone can easily recognize a shark or a dolphin because
of their distinctive shapes. Different species have different profiles when
viewed from the side, top or front. Some are slim and elongated, others
fat and rounded. The diagram above shows the shapes of many common
fishes.

 
Markings and body patterns

Many colourful reef fishes are adorned with pretty patterns and markings
on the body. Often, their common names include the kind of markings
found on them. For example, the 'six-bar regal angelfish' has 6 vertical
bars on its body. The 'chevron barracuda' has visible chevron markings.
The 'saddled butterflyfish' has saddle markings while the 'banded wrasse'
has bands. Some of these markings act as camouflage to break the
outline of the fish, while others like the false eye spot are used to
confuse predators.

 
Mouth, fin & tail shapes
Mouth shapes

The size and position of mouths of fishes differ and there can also be
differences in the relative sizes of their upper and lower lips. The mouth
can be right at the front or at the bottom of the head. They can be
elongated or protruded, making the fish appear to have a long nose. Lips
can be thin or thick, sometimes one lip might be bigger than the other,
or one lip may protrude more than the other. Groupers and rock cods are
easily identified by their superior mouths, where the lower lip or jaw
protrudes. Sharks have inferior mouths, while parrotfishes have terminal
mouths. Needlefish have elongated mouths, while goatfishes have barbels
(whisker-like appendages) under their mouths.

Fin shapes

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Identifying and recognizing fishes

Although most fishes have the usual set of fins at the top (dorsal fin),
side (pectoral fin) and bottom (pelvic and anal fins), the size, shape and
number of fins may differ. Groupers, damsels, wrasses, surgeonfish and
angelfish have one continuous dorsal fin, while barracuda, goatfish,
gobies, soldierfish and cardinalfish have 2 dorsal fins. It is not always
easy to make out the fins visually as they can be very translucent and thin
while the soft flowing dorsal fins on some species can appear folded
down close to the body.

Tail shapes

The tails of fishes also come in a variety of shapes. Fusiliers, jacks,

soldierfishes and cardinal fishes typically have forked tails, while wrasses
and parrotfishes typically have truncate or rounded tails. Tuna and some
jacks have lunate tails that are crescent shaped while lanceolate tails,
such as those on coelacanths and comet fishes, look like a lance or arrow
head.

 
Habitat and behaviour
Certain fishes like scorpionfish, goatfish, lizardfish, gobies and flounders,
live on the seabed and are often seen resting on or buried in the sand,
coral or rocks. Jawfish, soldierfish, cardinals and eels like to live in holes
or crevices while others like jacks, trevallies, sharks and wrasses, prefer
to swim around in the open.

Finally, observe the behaviour of the fish when resting, feeding or

moving. Lizardfish and hawkfish like to sit motionless on coral, darting
away into a crevice nearby when disturbed. Snappers, fusiliers and
cardinals prefer to congregate in schools. Some swim in a peculiar
fashion, like wrasses 'flapping' their pectoral fins like a bird and gobies
'walking' along the seabed using their pectoral fins. Others sleep in the
day and are active mainly at night like soldierfish and cardinalfish.

 
Distinguishing look-alikes
Sometimes, at first glance, it is hard to tell two similar looking fishes
apart. In such cases, look out for distinguishing features that may be
present in one species and absent in the other, such as barbels
(whiskers), spines and fin arrangements. On tiny fishes, these features
may be harder to see so you'll have to study the fish carefully. Shown
below are distinguishing features between some common fishes that
appear similar.

Angelfish and butterflyfish

Angelfish (left) have a visible spine on the gill cover which is absent in

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Identifying and recognizing fishes

butterflyfish (right). Angelfish are usually larger, growing up to 60cm in

length and usually have more brilliant patterns and colours and larger
scales. Butterflyfish are smaller, growing up to 30cm in length. Many have
bright orange and yellow markings and often have false eye spots near
the tail.

Bannerfish and Moorish Idol

Moorish idols (left) have black tails, a predominantly black face and
tubular white nose with a yellowish-orange patch while bannerfish (right)
have yellow tails. 'Gill' in the movie 'Nemo' is a moorish idol.

Gobies and blennies

These fishes can be tiny and are often partially hidden, making
identification difficult. Blennies (left) have a single continuous dorsal fin
while gobies (right) have 2 distinct dorsal fins. Many blennies also have
'eyelashes' or feelers near the eyes and faces that resemble grasshoppers.
The pelvic fins on gobies are joined at the base forming a little cup for
support, while the pelvic fins of blennies are separate and located clearly
behind their pectoral fins. Prawn gobies are easier to identify as they live
with a prawn as a housemate. The goby stands guard at the entrance to
the hole while the prawn cleans out their living quarters.

Napolean wrasse and bumphead parrotfish

Both of these large fishes have pronounced bumps (or humps) on their
heads especially in mature adults. The bump on the Napolean or
Humphead wrasse (left) is located on the forehead while the bump on the
parrotfish (right) appears at the top of the head. The Napolean has a
longer protruding jaw with subtle striped patterns on its face while the
parrotfish has a beaked mouth and light stripe running down its nose.

Pufferfish and porcupinefish

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Identifying and recognizing fishes

Both can inflate their bodies by sucking in water but while the pufferfish
(left) has a smooth body, the porcupinefish (right) has many small spines
all over its body. When the spines are folded flat against the body, they
look like little uneven bumps on the body of the porcupinefish.

Squirrelfish and soldierfish

Both are predominantly red, have large eyes and large scales, but only
squirrelfish (left) have a visible spine on the gill cover that is absent in
soldierfish (right). Many squirrelfish species also have horizontal stripes
across the length of the body.

Stonefish and scorpionfish

Both look like stones or corals and are very well camouflaged. The
stonefish (left) has a short and wide upturned mouth on a flattened face
which gives it a distinct grumpy appearance. Its eyes are set deeper into
the head. From the top, it looks more rounded with the head and torso
looking top-heavy and a tail that is often curled slightly to one side. The
scorpionfish (right) looks more like a fish with a slender body, longer
snout and a mouth that is angled but not grumpy.

Surgeonfish and other fish

Surgeonfish have a scalpel-like spine at the base of the tail which is

absent in other fishes. When folded, the spine may not always be clearly
visible and sometimes appear as a fine horizontal line. The character

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Identifying and recognizing fishes

'Dory' in the movie 'Nemo' is a palette surgeonfish.

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