Lattice Monocle Bream

Scientific Name: Scolopsis taeniopterus
Family: Coral Breams – Nemipteridae
Maximum Size: 30cm
Identification: Yellowish gray upper body and white below; dark mid-lateral stripe; red spot on pectoral fin base, bluish stripe or patch on snout extends between eyes.
Favourite: Solitary or form groups; shy.
Hide-out: Sandy fringe of reefs or muddy estuaries in 2-25m.
Location: East Indo-Asian Pacific – E. Andaman Sea to Papua New Guinea. Taiwan to Australia.

Bridled Monocle Bream

Scientific Name: Scolopsis bilineatus
Family: Coral Breams – Nemipteridae
Maximum Size: 25cm
Identification: Dark gray to yellow upper body, white below; black-edged white band runs from below eye to rear of dorsal fin, 3 yellow stripes on upper head.
Favourite: Solitary or form small groups.
Hide-out: Sand and rubble fringe of reefs to 25m.
Location: Indo-West Pacific – Maldives to Fiji. S.W. Japan to Australia and New Caledonia.

Arabian Monocle Bream

Scientific Name: Scolopsis ghanam
Family: Coral Breams – Nemipteridae
Maximum Size: 25cm
Identification: Alternating pale gray to black and white stripes on upper body and white below with rows of black spots.
Favourite: Solitary or form small groups.
Hide-out: Coastal reefs and lagoons in 2-25m.
Location: Indian Ocean – Red Sea, E. Africa and Arabian Gulf to Andaman Sea.

Pinnate Spadefish

Scientific Name: Platax pinnatus
Family: Spadefishes – Ephippidae
Maximum Size: 37cm
Identification: Silver; black eye bar and a second bar through pectoral and onto ventral fin; distinctive protruding snout. Young adults have a single wide dusky bar on rear body.
Favourite: Usually solitary.
Hide-out: Coastal reefs and seaward slopes in 2-25m.
Location: West Pacific – Sumatra in Indonesia to Solomon Is., Vanuatu and Fiji. S.W. Japan to N. Australia and New Caledonia.

Golden Spadefish

Scientific Name: Platax boersii
Family: Spadefishes – Ephippidae
Maximum Size: 47cm
Identification: Yellowish silver; dark to faint bar through eye and a second bar from nape to ventral fins.
Favourite: Form large schools.
Hide-out: Coastal and outer reef dropoffs in 3-30m.
Location: Asian Pacific – Red Sea to Indonesia, Philippines, Palau, New Guinea and Solomon Is. north to S.W. Japan.