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.
在哪里、什么时候能见到
"常驻"表示在该目的地潜水时大多数情况下都能遇见它们；"季节性"表示在所列月份内可靠出现；其他任何情况都是意外惊喜，而非计划中的保障。
| 目的地 | 可靠性 | 月份 | 备注 |
|---|---|---|---|
| North & South Malé AtollsMaldives | Resident: seen on most dives | 全年皆宜 | |
| Sipadan & MabulMalaysia | Resident: seen on most dives | 全年皆宜 | |
| Ari AtollMaldives | Resident: seen on most dives | 全年皆宜 | |
| Similan Islands & Richelieu RockThailand | Resident: seen on most dives | 全年皆宜 | |
| Zanzibar & MnembaTanzania | Resident: seen on most dives | 全年皆宜 |
最佳月份一览
深入了解
栖息地: Clear lagoon and seaward reefs, schooling by day under table corals, overhangs, and bommie shadows.
分布范围: Indian Ocean and western Pacific, from East Africa and the Maldives to Indonesia, Micronesia, and Samoa.
习性: 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.
体型: 通常约 0.4 m; 记录深度可达 0.6 m (total length).
与它相处时的行为守则
Approach a resting school slow and level from down-current; rushing the formation scatters it and costs every diver behind you the sight.
保育
Taken in local fisheries across parts of the range; day-schooling behavior makes populations easy to deplete where spearfishing is common.
以此著称的已标注潜点
高亮显示的潜点由编辑团队为该物种标注；数字为1990年以来潜点约5公里范围内的GBIF出现记录数。
观看
来自官方渠道
Wildlife of Monterey | New film in our auditorium
Live Aviary Cam | Monterey Bay Aquarium
Live Aviary Cam | Monterey Bay Aquarium
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