Inshore Surgeonfish, Acanthurus grammoptilus Richardson 1843

Other Names: Finelined Surgeonfish, Inshore Surgeon, Northwest Surgeonfish, Ring-tailed Surgeonfish

An Inshore Surgeonfish, Acanthurus grammoptilus, at Dampier, Western Australia. Source: Graham Edgar / Reef Life Survey. License: CC by Attribution

Summary:

A brown to dark brown surgeonfish with a white band around the tail base, a yellow streaks before and behind the eye, small yellow spots on the cheek, dorsal, a narrow white margin on the caudal fin, a fine blue margin and a series of blue lines on the outer part of the dorsal and anal fins, a yellow outer half of the pectoral fin, and a dark spine on the caudal peduncle.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2020, Acanthurus grammoptilus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 13 Jan 2025, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/1024

Inshore Surgeonfish, Acanthurus grammoptilus Richardson 1843

More Info

Distribution	Widespread in Australia, from Rottnest Island, Western Australia, to the Clarence River, New South Wales, including reefs in the Coral Sea; also Cartier Island in the Timor Sea and Christmas Island in the eastern Indian Ocean. Elsewhere the species occurs from Indonesia eastwards to New Caledonia and Fiji. Occurs in a range of habitats from silty inshore reefs to clear outer reefs.
Features	Dorsal fin IX, 25-26; Anal fin III, 23-24; Pectoral fin 16-17; Gill rakers 16-18. Body depth 1.9-2.5 in SL (juveniles and subadults deeper-bodied); caudal fin lunate.
Similar Species	Differs from the other Acanthurus species in having a yellow outer half on the pectoral fins, a narrow white margin on the tail, small yellow spots on the cheek, and no distinct yellow band or blotch near the eye.
Etymology	The specific name grammoptilus is from the Greek grammi (= line, stripe), possibly in reference to the fine blue lines on the doral and anal fins: “five dark longitudinal streaks on the dorsal, and some lines more faintly traced on the border of the anal, both these fins being also very narrowly edged with black”.
Species Citation	Acanthurus grammoptilus Richardson 1843, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. 1 11(69): 176. Type locality: Port Essington, Northern Territory.
Author	Bray, D.J. 2020
Resources	Atlas of Living Australia Australian Faunal Directory Catalog of Fishes

Inshore Surgeonfish, Acanthurus grammoptilus Richardson 1843

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. & Swainston, R. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A field guide for anglers and divers. Perth, WA : Western Australian Museum vi 201 pp., 70 pls.

Blaber, S.J.M., Brewer, D.T. & Harris, A.N. 1994. Distribution, biomass and community structure of demersal fishes of the Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia. Australian Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 45(3): 375-396.

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., Nañola Jr., C.L., Pardede, S., Rocha, L.A., Russell, B., Sanciangco, J.C., Stockwell, B., Harwell, H. and 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.

Gloerfelt-Tarp, T. & Kailola, P.J. 1984. Trawled Fishes of Southern Indonesia and Northwest Australia. Jakarta : Dir. Gen. Fish. (Indonesia), German Tech. Coop., Aust. Dev. Ass. Bur. 406 pp.

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 edn. Perth : Aqua Marine and Monitoring Services.

Hutchins, J.B. 1990. Fish survey of South Passage, Shark Bay, Western Australia. pp. 263-278 in Berry, P.F., Bradshaw, S.D. & Wilson, B.R. (eds) Research in Shark Bay: Report of the France-Australe Bicentenary Expedition Committee. Perth : Western Australian Museum.

Hutchins, J.B. 1997. Checklist of fishes of the Houtman Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia. pp. 239-253 in Wells, F. (ed.) The Marine Fauna and Flora of the Houtman Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia. Perth : Western Australian Museum.

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

Hutchins, J.B. 2003. Checklist of marine fishes of the Dampier Archipelago, Western Australia. pp. 453-478 in Wells, F.E., Walker, D.I., & Jones, D.S. (eds). Proceedings of the Eleventh International Marine Biological Workshop: The Marine Flora and Fauna of Dampier, Western Australia. Perth : Western Australian Museum.

Johnson, J.W. 2010. Fishes of the Moreton Bay Marine Park and adjacent continental shelf waters, Queensland, Australia. pp. 299-353 in Davie, P.J.F. & Phillips, J.A. Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Marine Biological Workshop, The Marine Fauna and Flora of Moreton Bay. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 54(3)

Johnson, J.W. & Gill, A.C. 2005. Reef and shore fishes of Sweers Island, Gulf of Carpentaria. Gulf of Carpentaria Scientific Study Report. Geography Monograph Series. Brisbane: Royal Geographic Society of Queensland. pp. 239-260

Kuiter, R.H. & Debelius, H. 2001. Surgeonfishes, Rabbitfishes and Their Relatives. A comprehensive guide to Acanthuroidei. Chorleywood, U.K. : TMC Publishing 208 pp.

Larson, H.K. & Williams, R.S. 1997. Darwin Harbour fishes: a survey and annotated checklist. pp. 339-380 in Hanley, H.R., Caswell, G., Megirian, D. & Larson, H.K. (eds) The Marine Flora and Fauna of Darwin Harbour, Northern Territory, Australia. Proceedings of the Sixth International Marine Biology Workshop. Darwin : Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory 466 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

Randall J.E. 1956. A revision of the surgeon fish genus Acanthurus. Pacific Science 10(2): 159-235. http://hdl.handle.net/10125/8690

Randall, J.E. 2001. Surgeonfishes of Hawai'i and the World. Honolulu : Mutual Publishing and Bishop Museum Press 125 pp.

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.

Richardson, J. 1843. Contributions to the ichthyology of Australia. Annals and Magazine of Natural History 1 11(69): 169-182 See ref at BHL

Russell, B., Abesamis, R., Clements, K.D., Choat, J.H., McIlwain, J., Myers, R., Nanola, C., Rocha, L.A. & Stockwell, B. 2012. Acanthurus grammoptilus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012: e.T178006A1518945. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012.RLTS.T178006A1518945.en. Downloaded on 23 July 2019.

Russell, B.C. & Houston, W. 1989. Offshore fishes of the Arafura Sea. The Beagle, Records of the Museums and Art Galleries of the Northern Territory 6(1): 69-84

Sainsbury, K.J., Kailola, P.J. & Leyland, G.G. 1984. Continental Shelf Fishes of Northern and North-Western Australia. Canberra : Fisheries Information Service 375 pp. figs & pls.