Sharks
Tasselled Wobbegong
Eucrossorhinus dasypogon · Cartilaginous fish, family Orectolobidae
Half the pleasure of a tasselled wobbegong is the moment of resolution: what read as a patch of algae-furred reef assembles itself into a shark, flattened, marbled in fawn and umber, chin frilled with weedy tassels, eyes like slits in upholstery. Raja Ampat made it famous; nearly every site there hides one under a table coral, sometimes with its tail wedged in a barrel sponge and its head cocked toward passing fusiliers. The strike, if you're lucky enough to witness one, is a white blur and a shut mouth. It is camouflage elevated to a career, and a mascot for the strangeness of Coral Triangle diving.
Where and when to see one
"Resident" means most dives at that destination encounter them; "seasonal" means reliably present in the listed months; anything else is a bonus, not a plan.
| Destination | Reliability | Months | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raja AmpatIndonesia | Resident: seen on most dives | Year-round | |
| Milne BayPapua New Guinea | Resident: seen on most dives | Year-round | |
| Cairns & the Ribbon ReefsAustralia | Occasional | Year-round | |
| Kimbe BayPapua New Guinea | Occasional | Year-round |
Best month, at a glance
| Month | Reliable destinations |
|---|---|
| January | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
| February | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
| March | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
| April | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
| May | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
| June | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
| July | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
| August | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
| September | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
| October | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
| November | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
| December | Raja Ampat · Milne Bay · Cairns & the Ribbon Reefs · Kimbe Bay |
Understanding them
Habitat: Coral reefs: under table corals, inside barrel sponges, and on ledges, where it lies flattened and all but invisible
Range: The Coral Triangle's eastern arc: eastern Indonesia (Raja Ampat above all), Papua New Guinea, and northern Australia
Behavior: The definitive ambush shark. A fringe of branching dermal tassels erases its outline against coral, and it can lie unmoving for hours, luring fish with subtle tail movements before a strike faster than the eye. Mostly nocturnal on the move; by day divers find it coiled under plate corals.
Diet: Fish and crustaceans ambushed at point-blank range; capable of swallowing surprisingly large prey, including other sharks
Size: typically around 1.2 m; documented up to 1.8 m (total length).
How to behave around one
Never touch, lift, or drag one into the open; keep fingers off ledges you haven't scanned; give a walking wobbegong right of way at night.
Conservation
Least Concern, with most of its core range inside Indonesian and PNG reef systems; localized pressure comes from reef degradation and the aquarium trade.
Charted sites known for them
Highlighted sites were charted for this species by our editors; numbers are GBIF occurrence records logged within about 5 km of a site since 1990.
Watch
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