Blue-spotted spinefoot
Siganus corallinus
Golden Rabbitfish
Siganus guttatus
About
The golden rabbitfish is easy to spot in murky, mangrove-fringed water thanks to a bright orange-yellow spot on its back. It reaches up to 42 cm, though most adults are closer to 25 cm.
Also known as: orange-spotted spinefoot
- Length
- 25 cm · max 42 cm
- Depth
- up to 25 m
How to tell it apart
The single bright yellow-orange saddle spot near the tail end of the dorsal fin distinguishes it from other rabbitfish with more scattered spotting or plain coloring.
Appearance
Its body is flattened side to side, dusky blue on top and silvery below, with a single large yellow-orange spot near the rear of the dorsal fin, the fin along its back, close to the tail. Smaller reddish-brown spots dot the flanks, and fine lines and spots pattern the head. Fin spines along the back, belly, and tail carry venom glands.
Habitat
It lives in turbid inshore reefs and mangroves, tolerating brackish water and even entering rivers with the tide, from the shallows down to 25 m.
Behaviour
It schools throughout its life, usually in groups of 10 to 15. Young fish settle in seagrass beds near river mouths before adults move onto reef drop-offs. It feeds mainly on algae growing on the seabed and, unusually for a rabbitfish, is sometimes active at night.
Did you know?
Unlike most rabbitfish, which feed only by day, this species is sometimes active and even spawns at night.
Log it in Into the Blue
Describe what you saw and we name it, then keep every species you find in your Oceandex.
