Goldspotted Sweetlips, Plectorhinchus flavomaculatus (Ehrenberg 1830)

Other Names: Gold-spot Blubber-lips, Goldspot Sweetlip Bream, Gold-spotted Sweetlips, Lemon Sweetlips, Morwong, Netted Morwong, Netted Sweetlips, Rubberlip, Yellow-spotted Sweetlip

A Goldspotted Sweetlips, Plectorhinchus flavomaculatus, at The Mooring, Wheeler Reef, Great Barrier Reef. Source: Richard Ling / Flickr. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

Summary:

A greyish to greyish-brown sweetlips with orange and blue lines on the head, small orange spots on the upper body, dorsal and caudal fins, and a dusky lower margin on the caudal fin.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2021, Plectorhinchus flavomaculatus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 16 Apr 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/454

Goldspotted Sweetlips, Plectorhinchus flavomaculatus (Ehrenberg 1830)

More Info

Distribution	South of Perth, Western Australia, around the tropical north to southern New South Wales. Elsewhere the species occurs in the tropical Indo-West Pacific. Inhabits sheltered coastal reefs and lagoons, often in silty areas. Juveniles can be found in weed beds in estuaries and harbours.
Features	Dorsal fin XII-XIII, 19-22; Anal fin III, 7; Gill rakers (first gill arch) 11-14 + 1 + 16-19 = 26-34; Lateral line (tubed scales) ~ about 53-60; Body depth 2.5-2.8 in SL; chin with 6 pores, no median pit; lips fleshy, moderately swollen with age. Scales ctenoid (rough to touch). 4th or 5th dorsal-fin spines longest; caudal fin slightly rounded in juveniles becoming emarginate in adults.
Colour	Body bluish grey, juveniles with golden or rusty orange stripes along the body that break into a reticulate pattern and later form small spots that may be lost with age or remain as lines, or lines of spots on head.
Feeding	Feeds mostly on small fishes and crustaceans.
Etymology	The specific name flavomaculatus is from the Latin flavus (= yellow) and maculatus (= spotted), in reference to the small orange spots on the upper part of the body.
Species Citation	Diagramma flavomaculatum Ehrenberg, 1830, Hist. Nat. Poiss. 5: 304. Type locality: Red Sea.
Author	Bray, D.J. 2021
Resources	Atlas of Living Australia Australian Faunal Directory Catalog of Fishes

Goldspotted Sweetlips, Plectorhinchus flavomaculatus (Ehrenberg 1830)

References

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