Emperors
emperors
Longface emperor
Lethrinus olivaceus
About
The longface emperor is the biggest member of the emperor bream family, and it has the longest snout of any of them too. It grows up to 100 cm and 14 kg, though most divers will see one closer to 70 cm long.
Also known as: lethrinus olivaceus, emperor, long nose emperor, long-nosed emperor, longnose emperor, longnose pigface bream, pig face bream emperor, pigface bream, smalltooth emperor, trumpet emperor, yellow-banded emperor
- Length
- 70 cm · max 1 m
- Weight
- max 14 kg
- Depth
- up to 185 m
How to tell it apart
It is easy to confuse with other emperor breams (Lethrinus species). The giveaway is size and snout length: no other emperor in the group grows this large, or has a snout this long for its body.
Appearance
It has a slender, olive-grey body scattered with irregular dark blotches, and a long, pointed snout marked with fine wavy lines. Large fish often grow a small hump on the snout, just in front of the eyes.
Habitat
It lives across the tropical Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea and East Africa to Samoa and the Ryukyu Islands. It favours lagoons, sandy coastal areas, and reef slopes, from very shallow water down to 185 m. Young fish stay in shallow sandy areas, often in large schools, while adults move onto deeper coastal slopes and drop-offs and are usually seen alone.
Is it dangerous?
reports of ciguatera poisoning
Did you know?
For years, scientists treated this fish and a similar, shorter-snouted relative (Lethrinus longirostris) as one and the same species. Body-shape and DNA studies only confirmed them as two separate species in 2022.
Log it in Into the Blue
Describe what you saw and we name it, then keep every species you find in your Oceandex.
