‹ Fish Finder· #003
Ringtail Surgeonfish
Acanthurus blochii
Bislamastrongskin— names this kind of animal, not this species alone
- Habitat
- Reef
- Max size
- 59 cm
- Depth
- 2-15 m
- Family
- Acanthuridae
Acanthurus blochii, the ringtail surgeonfish or dark surgeonfish, is a marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This fish is found in the Indo-Pacific.
Adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Easily confused with
Side by side, with what tells them apart.
Near-identical names and looks: both are dark surgeonfish with a white band around the base of the tail. Ring-tail Surgeon is dark brown with a bright orange socket around the tail spine, orange marks in front of and behind the pupil, and an orange-brown flush below the pectoral fin. Ringtail Surgeonfish is blue-grey with a yellow spot behind the eye and a dark blotch, not orange, around the tail spine; its white ring can fade or be missing.
See the Ring-tail Surgeon →
Two big grey surgeonfish that feed over sand. Yellowfin Surgeonfish has dull yellow in front of the eye, the outer third of the pectoral fin yellow, and yellowish dorsal and anal fins. Ringtail Surgeonfish has plain brown to blue-grey pectoral fins, a small yellow spot behind the eye rather than in front of it, yellowish-brown spots that line up along the body, and usually a white ring around the base of the tail.
See the Yellowfin Surgeonfish →