Chaetodermis penicilligerus

Jewelry Filefish ( Chaetodermis penicilligerus )

The jewelry Filefish ( Chaetodermis penicilligerus ) lives in the sea around the Malay archipelago, off Malaysia, north to the coasts of southern Japan and south to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. He prefers lagoons with abundant algae and seagrass beds at depths 3-25 meters. The fish swim slowly, live as solitary or in pairs. Jewellery file fish feed on coral polyps, small invertebrates and algae.

Features

Jewellery file fish are 30 inches long and have a very high-backed, laterally flattened body, which is covered by all kinds of branched skin appendages. Thus, the body contours are resolved ( Somatolyse ). The head is large, the mouth terminal. The basic color is sand, or gray; narrow black longitudinal lines and isolated areas with small blue dots cover the flanks.

Fins formula: Dorsal II/25-26, Anal 23-24