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| fishes text index | photo index |
| Phylum Chordata > Subphylum Vertebrate > fishes > Family Haemulidae |
| Brown
sweetlips Plectorhinchus gibbosus Family Haemulidae updated Dec 08 Where seen? These brown juveniles are sometimes seen on many of our shores, 'drifting' like dead leaves with the changing tides. Among seagrasses and coral rubble. Features: To about 70cm, those seen range from tiny ones around 2cm, to larger ones about 12cm. Juveniles are brownish with a transparent tail fin, adults are uniformly dark grey to brownish. Lips swollen and thick especially in adults. It can change colour rapidly from pale patterns to dark. Often seen in pairs or alone in shallow waters at low tide near the mid-water mark. Juveniles drift with the moving water mimicking floating leaves and flotsam, sometimes even tilting sideways to appear more leaf-like. May be mistaken for the Tripletail (Lobotes surinamensis). |
 Same fish rapidly changing ... Labrador, Oct 04 |
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 ..colour and patterns. |
Brown sweetlips on Singapore shores
 Sentosa, Nov 04 |
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 Changi, Jul 04 |
 Chek Jawa, Nov 03 |
 St. John's Island, Jun 07 |
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Periplus Editions. 292 pp.|
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