Crescent-tail Bigeye

The crescent-tail bigeye is a reef fish with huge red eyes and a deep, flattened body. It is widespread but not often seen, and its large eyes suit its habit of feeding after dark.

Also known as: bigeye snapper, lunartail bigeye, moontail bullseye, lunar-tailed bigeye, lunar-tailed glasseye, black-spot big-eye, crescent-tailed bigeye, crescent-tail big-eye

Two other bigeyes on the same reefs look very similar. The tail settles it: theirs is only slightly rounded, while this species' tail is cut into a deep crescent. Do not use body colour to tell them apart, since this fish switches between red, silver and banded within moments.

The body is deep and strongly flattened from side to side. The eyes are very large and red, and stay red even when the rest of the fish looks silver. The mouth is set at an angle with the lower jaw sticking out, and the teeth are small and cone-shaped. The pelvic fins, on the underside, are very large. The tail has a hollowed rear edge that can form a clear crescent. Colour changes quickly and can be orange, all red, all silver, or silver crossed by broad red bands, the first of which runs through the eye. There may be a row of small dark spots along the side.

It is widespread across the Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea and southern Africa to French Polynesia, southern Japan, and Australia, living on outer reef slopes, rocky ground, and in lagoons. Look for it around structure rather than in the open, and remember it is a night feeder, so by day it tends to hang in shaded spots.

It hunts after dark, taking small fish, small crustaceans such as shrimp and crabs, small squid and octopus, and bristle worms. Most of the time it lives alone, but it may form small groups and sometimes gathers in large schools in open water. Its eggs, larvae and youngest juveniles drift in open water.

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  Bigscale Bullseye

  Pempheris multiradiata

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  Blacktip Bullseye

  Pempheris affinis

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  Short Bigeye

  Pristigenys alta

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  Vanikoro Sweeper

  Pempheris vanicolensis