Blackhead Threefin, Enneapterygius larsonae Fricke 1994
Other Names: Western Australian Black-head Triplefin

A male Blackhead Threefin, Enneapterygius larsonae, on Elizabeth Reef, South Cottesloe Beach, Perth, Western Australia, February 2016. Source: wparkinson / iNaturalist.org. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial
Summary:
Males are red with about five white saddles or bars along the back and sometimes the sides, a black mask covering most of the head, chest and pectoral-fin base, and a white bar on the pectoral-fin base immediately behind the black area. Females are a mottled greenish to brownish, with indistinct white saddle/bars, including on the pectoral-fin base.
Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2020, Enneapterygius larsonae in Fishes of Australia, accessed 21 Apr 2025, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/1119
Blackhead Threefin, Enneapterygius larsonae Fricke 1994
More Info
Distribution |
Widespread in Australia, from Cape Naturaliste, south Western Australia, to the to Cobourg Peninsula, Northern Territory, including Ashmore Reef in the Timor Sea, and the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland (and possibly south to Sydney, New South Wales). Elsewhere the species occurs in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. Inhabits coralline rocks, seagrass, and macroalgae on shallow coral and rocky reefs, at depths to 12 m. |
Features |
Dorsal fin III + XI-XIV + 8-12; Anal fin I,14-20; Pectoral fin 14-18; Pelvic fin I,2; Lateral line scales 14-20 + 13-20. |
Species Citation |
Enneapterygius larsonae Fricke 1994, Theses Zoologicae 24: 235, figs 44-45. Type locality: Northwestern tip of Rosemary Island, Dampier Archipelago, Western Australia. |
Author |
Bray, D.J. 2020 |
Resources |
Blackhead Threefin, Enneapterygius larsonae Fricke 1994
References
Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp.
Fricke, R 1997. Tripterygiid fishes of the western and central Pacific, with descriptions of 15 new species, including an annotated checklist of world Tripterygiidae (Teleostei). Theses Zoologicae 29: 1-607 figs 1-110
Fricke, R. 1994. Tripterygiid fishes of Australia, New Zealand and the Southwest Pacific Ocean, with descriptions of 2 new genera and 16 species (Teleostei). Theses Zoologicae 24: 1-585 figs 1-130
Fricke, R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2017. Enneapterygius niue, a new species of triplefin from Niue and Samoa, southwestern Pacific Ocean (Teleostei: Tripterygiidae). Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation 25: 14-32 http://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.269464
Hoschke, A., Whisson, G. & Moore, G.I. 2019. Complete list of fishes from Rottnest Island. pp. 150-161 in Whisson, G. & Hoschke, A. (eds) The Rottnest Island fish book. 2nd ed. Perth : Aqua Research and Monitoring Services.
Hutchins, J.B. & Swainston, R. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete field guide for anglers and divers. Perth : Swainston Publishing 180 pp.
Larson, H.K., Williams, R.S. & Hammer, M.P. 2013. An annotated checklist of the fishes of the Northern Territory, Australia. Zootaxa 3696(1): 1-293
Williams, J. & Holleman, W. 2014. Enneapterygius larsonae. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2014: e.T179019A1560035. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-3.RLTS.T179019A1560035.en. Downloaded on 15 October 2019
Williams, J.T. & Fricke, R. 2001. Family Tripterygiidae. Triplefins. pp. 3532-3535 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.