Reef Fish
Oriental Sweetlips
Plectorhinchus vittatus · Bony fish — family Haemulidae (grunts and sweetlips)
Adult oriental sweetlips have perfected standing still in public. Schools of a few dozen hover in tight formation under table corals and overhangs through the day, thick lips and painted stripes all facing the current, barely finning — an arrangement photographers structure whole dives around, especially in the Maldives. They disperse at night to root crustaceans and worms out of the sand. The juveniles seem like a different animal entirely: blotched brown-and-white clowns that swim in exaggerated, flopping loops, a performance widely interpreted as mimicry of toxic flatworms, advertising unpalatability before the fish has size on its side. Day schools tolerate a slow, level approach to within a body length; rush them and the formation dissolves over the reef edge. The family name is earned — disturbed fish grunt audibly by grinding pharyngeal teeth.
どこで・いつ見られるか
「常駐（Resident）」とは、そのダイビングスポットでのほとんどのダイブで遭遇できることを意味します。「季節限定（Seasonal）」とは、記載された月に確実に見られることを意味します。それ以外の出会いはボーナスであり、計画の前提にはなりません。
| 目的地 | 信頼性 | 月 | メモ |
|---|---|---|---|
| North & South Malé AtollsMaldives | Resident — seen on most dives | 年間を通じて | |
| Sipadan & MabulMalaysia | Resident — seen on most dives | 年間を通じて | |
| Ari AtollMaldives | Resident — seen on most dives | 年間を通じて | |
| Similan Islands & Richelieu RockThailand | Resident — seen on most dives | 年間を通じて | |
| Zanzibar & MnembaTanzania | Resident — seen on most dives | 年間を通じて |
ベストな月、一目でわかる
理解を深める
ハビタット: Clear lagoon and seaward reefs, schooling by day under table corals, overhangs, and bommie shadows.
分布域: Indian Ocean and western Pacific, from East Africa and the Maldives to Indonesia, Micronesia, and Samoa.
生態・行動: Day-resting schools hold tight formation facing the current, dispersing after dark to feed; boldly patterned juveniles swim in exaggerated flopping loops widely read as flatworm mimicry.
食性: Crustaceans, worms, and other invertebrates rooted from sand and rubble at night.
サイズ: 目安は 0.4 m; 確認済みの最大記録 0.6 m (total length).
出会ったときの正しいふるまい方
Approach a resting school slow and level from down-current; rushing the formation scatters it and costs every diver behind you the sight.
保全
Taken in local fisheries across parts of the range; day-schooling behavior makes populations easy to deplete where spearfishing is common.
目撃情報で知られるダイブサイト
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