Horseshoe Surgeonfish, Acanthurus fowleri De Beaufort 1951
Other Names: Fowler's Surgeonfish, Horse-shoe Surgeon, Horse-shoe Surgeonfish

A Horseshoe Surgeonfish, Acanthurus fowleri, at the Raja Ampat islands, West Papua, Indonesia, January 2016. Source: Mark Rosenstein / iNaturalist. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
Summary:
A surgeonfish with a large semicircular to subtriangular dark blue to black line above pectoral fin, a purplish head, a white band around caudal-fin base and pale yellowish caudal fin lobes.
Cite this page as:
Dianne J. Bray, Acanthurus fowleri in Fishes of Australia, accessed 18 Feb 2025, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/1032
Horseshoe Surgeonfish, Acanthurus fowleri De Beaufort 1951
More Info
Distribution |
Known from Scott Reef, north Western Australia, and Ashmore Reef in the Timor Sea. Elsewhere the species occurs in the tropical West Pacific - Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia to the Solomon Islands. Inhabits deep outer reef slopes, usually in depths below 20 m. |
Feeding |
A grazer/detritivore. |
Fisheries |
Infrequently traded in the aquarium industry. |
Species Citation |
Acanthurus fowleri de Beaufort 1951, fish. Indo-Aust. Archipel. 9: 149. Type locality: Maitara Island, Philippines; Gomomo Island, Philippines; Buka Buka Island, Sulawesi, Indonesia. |
Author |
Dianne J. Bray |
Horseshoe Surgeonfish, Acanthurus fowleri De Beaufort 1951
References
Abesamis, R., Choat, J.H., Clements, K.D., McIlwain, J., Myers, R., Nanola, C., Rocha, L.A., Russell, B. & Stockwell, B. 2012. Acanthurus fowleri. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012: e.T177959A1503075. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012.RLTS.T177959A1503075.en. Downloaded on 27 May 2016.
Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp.
Comeros-Raynal, M.T., Choat, J.H., Polidoro, B.A., Clements, K.D., Abesamis, R., Craig, M.T., Lazuardi, M.E., McIlwain, J., Muljadi, A., Myers, R.F., NaƱola Jr., C.L., Pardede, S., Rocha, L.A., Russell, B., Sanciangco, J.C., Stockwell, B., Harwell, H. & Carpenter, K.E. 2012. The likelihood of extinction of iconic and dominant components of coral reefs: the parrotfishes and surgeonfishes. PLoS ONE http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0039825.
de Beaufort, L.F. in de Beaufort, L.F. & Chapman, W.M. 1951. The fishes of the Indo-Australian Archipelago. Percomorphi (concluded), Blennoidea. Leiden : Brill Vol. 9 484 pp.
Kuiter, R.H. & Debelius, H. 2001. Surgeonfishes, Rabbitfishes and Their Relatives. A comprehensive guide to Acanthuroidei. Chorleywood, U.K. : TMC Publishing 208 pp.
Randall, J.E. 2001. Zanclidae, Acanthuridae. pp. 3651-3683 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, T.H. (eds) The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 6 pp. 3381-4218.
Randall, J.E. 2001. Surgeonfishes of Hawai'i and the World. Honolulu : Mutual Publishing and Bishop Museum Press 125 pp.