Jeffords, Jeffrey

Leaf_fish_profile

Taenianotus triacanthus

This leaf fish has coloration patterns that make it similar in appearance to an algae-covered sponge. This type of venomous fish be seen in a wide variety of colors, including pink, yellow, white (or off-white), and black, to name a few I have seen. As with other scorpionfish, leaf fish do not cruise the reef as do other fish-- they move suddenly, and only long enough to find a different perch from which to observe potential victims. Waiting patiently, they sway gently from side to side in the current, perhaps mimicking a piece of lightweight reef debris. Smaller than most reef scorpionfish, this one is about 3 1/2 inches in length, nearing its maximum length of about 100 cm (four inches). Leaf fish are also known as "paper fish".

About this image

Identification
Taenianotus triacanthus (Swayfish)
Location

Luzon Island, Philippines

Contributors
Jeffrey N. Jeffords
photographer copyright holder identification
Subjects
Subject Live Animal
Type Photo
Anatomy coloration/patterning cryptic
Life Stages and Gender adult/sexually mature

Conditions of use

Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License .

To cite this page: Jeffords, J. 2004. "Leaf_fish_profile.jpg" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed {%B %d, %Y} at https://animaldiversity.org/collections/contributors/jeffrey_jeffords/fish/Leaf_fish_profile/

Last updated: 2004-35-14 / Generated: 2025-09-15 02:01

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