Swallowtail Angelfish, Genicanthus melanospilos (Bleeker 1857)


Other Names: Black-spot Angelfish, Spotbreast Angelfish

A male Swallowtail Angelfish, Genicanthus melanospilos, on the Great Barrier Reef off Cairns, Queensland. Source: Mark Rosenstein / iNaturalist. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

Summary:
Males of this distinctive angelfish have numerous narrow black bars on the upper head and sides, a large black spot on the breast near the pelvic-fin bases, and very long caudal-fin lobes. Females are yellow above, pale grey below with broad black outer caudal-fin lobes.

Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2020, Genicanthus melanospilos in Fishes of Australia, accessed 29 Mar 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/650

Swallowtail Angelfish, Genicanthus melanospilos (Bleeker 1857)

More Info


Distribution

Rowley Shoals, Western Australia, and the far northern Great Barrier Reef, and reefs in the Corals Sea, to Channel Reef, off Cairns, Queensland; also at Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island in the eastern Indian Ocean. Elsewhere, the species is widespread in the tropical western Pacific. 

Inhabits coral rich areas on deep outer reef slopes and drop-offs. A small harem with a dominant male and several females feed on zooplankton above the reef.

Conservation

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Least Concern

Etymology

The specific name melanospilos is from the Latin melanos (= black) and spilos (= mark, spot) in reference to the black spot on the chest of males before the pelvic fin bases.

Species Citation

Holacanthus melanospilos Bleeker, 1857, Acta Soc. Sci. Indo-Neerland. 2: 56. Type locality: Ambon, Indonesia.

Author

Bray, D.J. 2020

Resources

Atlas of Living Australia 

Swallowtail Angelfish, Genicanthus melanospilos (Bleeker 1857)

References


Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 292 pp. 106 pls.

Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp.

Allen, G.R., Steene, R. & Allen, M. 1998. A Guide to Angelfishes & Butterflyfishes. Cairns : Odyssey Publishing/Tropical Reef Research 250 pp. figs.

Bleeker, P. 1857. Achtste bijdrage tot de kennis der vischfauna van Amboina. Acta Societatis Scientiarum Indo-Neerlandicae 2: 1-102. See ref online

Hobbs, J.-P.A., Ayling, A.M., Choat, J.H., Gilligan, J.J., McDonald, C.A., Neilson, J. & Newman, S.J. 2010. New records of marine fishes illustrate the biogeographic importance of Christmas Island, Indian Ocean. Zootaxa 2422: 63–68.

Hobbs, J-P.A., Newman, S.J., Mitsopoulos, G.E.A., Travers, M.J., Skepper, C.L., Gilligan, J.J., Allen, G.R., Choat, H.J. & Ayling, A.M. 2014. Checklist and new records of Christmas Island fishes: the influence of isolation, biogeography and habitat availability on species abundance and community composition. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Supplement 30: 184–202 https://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/rbz/supplement-no-30/

Hobbs, J-P.A., Newman, S .J., Mitsopoulos, G.E.A., Travers, M.J., Skepper, C.L., Gilligan, J.J., Allen, G.R., Choat, H.J. & Ayling, A.M. 2014. Fishes of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands: new records, community composition and biogeographic significance. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Supplement 30: 203–219 https://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/rbz/supplement-no-30/

Hutchins, J.B. 2001. Biodiversity of shallow reef fish assemblages in Western Australia using a rapid censusing technique. Records of the Western Australian Museum 20: 247-270.

Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. A comprehensive reference for divers and fishermen. Sydney, NSW, Australia : New Holland Publishers xvii, 434 pp.

Kuiter, R.H., Debelius, H. & Tanaka, H. 2003. Pomacanthidae, a Comprehensive Guide to Angelfishes. Melbourne : Zoonetics 206 pp.

Pyle, R. 2001. Chaetodontidae, Pomacanthidae. pp. 3224-3286 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, V.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 5 2791-3379 pp.

Pyle, R. & Myers, R. 2010. Genicanthus melanospilos. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010: e.T165843A6146629. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T165843A6146629.en. Downloaded on 15 October 2020.

Pyle, R.L. 2003. A systematic treatment of the reef-fish family Pomacanthidae (Pisces: Perciformes). PhD dissertation, Honolulu: University of Hawai’i, 422 pp, http://hdl.handle.net/10125/6906

Randall, J.E. 1975. A revision of the Indo-Pacific angelfish genus Genicanthus, with descriptions of three new species. Bulletin of Marine Science25(3): 393-421 See ref online

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1990. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 507 pp. figs.

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 557 pp. figs.

Steene, R.C. 1978. Butterfly and Angelfishes of the World. Australia. Sydney : A.H. & A.W. Reed Vol. 1 144 pp. 216 figs.

Quick Facts


CAAB Code:37365071

Biology:Hermaphrodite

Conservation:IUCN Least Concern

Depth:20-80 m

Fishing:Aquarium fish

Habitat:Reef associated

Max Size:18 cm TL

Species Maps

CAAB distribution map