Watanabe's Angelfish, Genicanthus watanabei (Yasuda & Tominaga 1970)


Other Names: Blackedged Angelfish, Pinstripe Angelfish, Wantanabe Angel, Watanabei Angelfish

A male Watanabe's Angelfish, Genicanthus watanabei, on Kwajalein Atoll. Marshall Islands, May 2002. Source: uwkwaj / iNaturalist.org. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial

Summary:
Males are pale blue to bluish-grey above with 8 narrow black stripes along the lower 2/3 of the body (the uppermost ending in yellow). Females are pale blue with black bars across the head and a black spot on the snout. Both sexes have a broad black submarginal band on the dorsal and anal fins, and blackish caudal-fin lobes. Juveniles somewhat resemble females in colour.

Video of a male Watanabe's Angelfish in an aquarium.
Video of female Watabane's Angelfish in an aquarium.
A male Watanabe's Angelfish in an aquarium.
Video of a captive bred Watanabe's Angelfish, 87/88 days old.An unusually patterned male Watanabe's Anglefish

Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2023, Genicanthus watanabei in Fishes of Australia, accessed 29 Mar 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/651

Watanabe's Angelfish, Genicanthus watanabei (Yasuda & Tominaga 1970)

More Info


Distribution

Far northern Great Barrier Reef to Lady Musgrave Island, Queensland, and reefs in the Coral Sea, with juveniles south to at least Sydney, New South Wales. Elsewhere the species occurs in the west-central Pacific: Taiwan to the Cook Islands and Tuamotu Archipelago, north to the Ryukyu Islands (Japan), south to New Caledonia, the Austral Islands (French Polynesia), and the Australia-New Guinea region. 
Inhabits steep seaward reefs and drop-offs, mostly in areas with strong currents - usually in small groups feeding on zooplankton.

Features

Dorsal fin XV-XVI, 15-16; Anal fin III, 14-17. 

Colour

Males pale blue with 8 black stripes long the lower 2/3 of the body (the posterior end of the uppermost yellow, the lowermost stripes extending the adjacent anal fin); females pale blue with a vertical black bar above the eye and spots on the forehead; both sexes have a broad submarginal band on the dorsal and anal fins; females with broad submarginal band on the caudal-fin lobes.

Biology

A protogynous hermaphrodite - all individuals first mature as females (initial phase, IP), and are capable of sex change from female to male (terminal phase, TP). Occurs in small haremic groups with a dominant male and several females.

Etymology

The species name "is dedicated to  Dr. Masao Watanabe who first reported this species under the name Holacanthus caudovittatus."

Species Citation

Holacanthus watanabei Yasuda & Tominaga, 1970, Japan. J. Ichthyol. 17(4): 144. Type locality: Onna Beach, Okinawa-jima, Ryukyu Islands, Japan, about 26°30'N, 127°50'E.

Author

Bray, D.J. 2023

Resources

Atlas of Living Australia

Watanabe's Angelfish, Genicanthus watanabei (Yasuda & Tominaga 1970)

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

Davis, T. 2016. First records of three fishes, and southern records of a further four fishes, from New South Wales, Australia. Check List 12(6): 1-6. https://doi.org/10.15560/12.6.2008 

Endoh, K. 2007. Angelfishes of the World. Two Little Fishies, Inc., Miami Gardens, Florida.

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 watanabei. In: IUCN 2013. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. . Downloaded on 23 March 2014.

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.

Yasuda, F. & Tominaga, Y. 1970. Two new long-tailed pomacanthine fishes from Miyake-Jima and Okinawa-Jima, Japan. Japanese Journal of Ichthyology 17(4): 141-151 figs 1-13 https://doi.org/10.11369/jji1950.17.141

Quick Facts


CAAB Code:37365073

Conservation:IUCN Least Concern

Depth:12-81 m

Fishing:Aquarium fish

Habitat:Reef associated

Max Size:15 cm TL

Species Image Gallery

Species Maps

CAAB distribution map