Naso brevirostris
Spotted Unicornfish
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Actinopterygii
Order
Perciformes
Family
Acanthuridae
Genus
Naso
Species
Naso brevirostris
Colours
Distinguishing features
Brown to grey, often paler anteriorly, subadults with small dark spots on head and body, adults with vertical lines on body. Usually a white line on edge of gill cover. Tail white with a large dark spot at base, truncate or slightly rounded, no trailing filaments. Adults with a horn that has near-horizontal darker lines, base of horn almost directly above snout, starts as a bump in juveniles about 10 cm long.
Size
- Up to 50 cm (Length of specimen)
Depth range
- Depth range data is not yet available.
Synonyms
Similar taxa
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Animalia:
Ringtail Unicornfish (species: Naso annulatus)
has no markings on head; adults have long trailing filaments on tail.
Distribution
©Atlas of Living Australia: Australian distribution
Web resources
References
References that assist with identification
- Allen, G., R. Steene, P. Humann and N. Deloach (2003). Reef fish identification: Tropical Pacific New World Publications Inc., Jacksonville, FL, USA.
- Randall, J.E., G.R. Allen and R.C. Steene (1997). Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea: Second edition Crawford House Publishing, Bathurst, NSW.
Other references
- Bellwood, D.R. and C.J. Fulton (2008). Sediment-mediated suppression of herbivory on coral reefs: decreasing resilience to rising sea levels and climate change? Limnology and Oceanography, 53: 2695-2701. LIRS catalog number 1259.
- View all references