Sand Tilefish
Malacanthus plumieri
Shortnose Tilefish
Malacanthus brevirostris
About
The shortnose tilefish is a slender fish of the open reef slope, easy to overlook until it darts for cover. It grows to about 32 cm.
Also known as: shortnose tilefish, quakerfish, quakerfish, flagtail tilefish, banded blanquillo, striped blanquillo, false whiting, stripetail tilefish, quakerfish, flagtail tilefish, flag-tail blanquillo, banded blanquillo, stripetail tilefish, false whiting
- Length
- 26.5 cm · max 32 cm
- Depth
- 14–45 m
- Temperature
- 22–28 °C
How to tell it apart
This slender fish can be confused with other slender reef fish. The quickest check is habitat: it hovers over its own burrow on open sand, well away from coral, rather than sheltering directly in reef structure. The twin stripes on its tail confirm it up close.
Appearance
Its body is long and slender with a rounded head and a large, sharp spine in the middle of the gill cover. It is grey above with a yellow tint on the forehead, and its back is marked with faint chevron-shaped bars. Two converging black stripes run along the center of the tail fin, one on the upper lobe and one on the lower.
Habitat
It lives on barren, open sand patches on outer reef slopes, from 5 m down to 50 m, usually between 14 and 45 m. It is often seen in pairs, sharing a burrow that they dig into the sand near a rock.
Did you know?
Its species name, brevirostris, means "short snout" - it was given this name for having a noticeably shorter snout than its close relatives in the genus Malacanthus.
Log it in Into the Blue
Describe what you saw and we name it, then keep every species you find in your Oceandex.