Reef fish is the collective term for the thousands of small and mid-sized fish species that live permanently on coral reefs — anthias, damselfish, butterflyfish, angelfish, wrasse, parrotfish, surgeonfish, fusiliers, snapper, groupers and countless others. On a healthy tropical reef they are the first thing you notice underwater: clouds of orange anthias hovering above the coral, parrotfish crunching on hard coral, butterflyfish patrolling in pairs and fusiliers streaming past the drop-off in silver rivers.
Behaviour & reproduction
- Size
- Unknown
- Weight
- A few grams up to several kilograms; most classic reef fish stay under 2 kg.
- Lifespan
- 3 to 20 years depending on family; small damselfish and anthias live a few years, large groupers and wrasse several decades.
- Status
- Not Evaluated
Behaviour changes through the day. Mornings and late afternoons bring feeding activity, hunting groupers and jacks pushing schools of fusiliers against the reef, while midday is the best time for slow macro-style observation of butterflyfish, angelfish and anemonefish. At dusk the day-active species disappear into the coral and the nocturnal shift — soldierfish, squirrelfish, bigeyes — takes over.