Fish Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ fish species — freshwater, saltwater, reef, and pelagic — with habitat, size, diet, behavior, and how to tell them apart.
Rock Beauty Angelfish
A vividly two-toned Caribbean angelfish with a bright yellow front half, a black rear body, and blue-edged fins, commonly seen darting among reef crevices and ledges.
reef
Sand Tiger Shark
A bulky, fierce-looking but generally docile shark with protruding rows of needle-like teeth, commonly seen hovering near shipwrecks and reef caves along temperate and subtropical coastlines.
cartilaginous
Lyretail Anthias
The lyretail anthias is a small, vividly orange-pink reef fish that forms large, colorful schools over coral drop-offs, with males sporting an elongated lyre-shaped tail.
reef
Flame Angelfish
The Flame Angelfish is a small, vivid orange-red dwarf angelfish marked with black vertical bars and blue-tipped fins, commonly seen darting among reef crevices in the Pacific.
reef
French Grunt
The French grunt is a small, abundant reef fish of the Caribbean and western Atlantic, marked by narrow yellow stripes over a silvery-white body and known for forming dense daytime schools.
reef
Cleaner Wrasse
The Cleaner Wrasse is a slender fish with a bold black horizontal stripe and blue body, famous for removing parasites and dead tissue from other reef fish at dedicated cleaning stations.
reef
Zebra Shark
A slender, docile reef shark whose striped juveniles transform into leopard-like spotted adults, unmistakable due to its very long tail.
reef
Tiger Tail Seahorse
A Southeast Asian reef seahorse easily recognized by the bold alternating light and dark stripes banding its prehensile tail, resembling a tiger's pattern.
reef
Peacock Grouper
The peacock grouper is a dark-bodied reef predator patterned with bright blue spots and pale bars, native to the Indo-Pacific and introduced to Hawaiian waters.
reef
Rainbow Parrotfish
The largest parrotfish in the Caribbean, displaying a striking blend of blue-green and orange coloration and playing a key role in reef sand production and algae control.
reef
Mandarinfish
A tiny, vividly patterned reef fish covered in a maze-like network of blue, orange, and green, prized as one of the most colorful fish in the ocean.
reef
Hedgehog Seahorse
One of the spiniest seahorses, the Hedgehog Seahorse is covered in numerous sharp, elongated body spines that give it a distinctly bristled silhouette against reef rubble.
reef
Azure Damselfish
A small, vividly blue damselfish common on Indo-Pacific reef flats and lagoons, easily spotted flitting among coral rubble in loose groups.
reef
Yellowtail Snapper
A slender Caribbean reef fish with a bold golden stripe running from snout to its deeply forked yellow tail. Often seen swimming in open water above reefs rather than hugging the bottom.
reef
Potato Grouper
The potato grouper is one of the largest reef groupers, a pale grey fish covered in dark blotches resembling potato skin, found on Indo-Pacific reefs and known for its curious, approachable behavior toward divers.
reef
Whitespotted Puffer
A common Indo-Pacific reef puffer with a dark olive-brown body scattered with small white spots and distinctive dark rings around its eyes, gills, and pectoral fin bases.
reef
Threadfin Trevally
An Indo-Pacific jack whose juveniles trail extraordinarily long thread-like fins, maturing into deep-bodied, steep-headed adults over sandy coastal bottoms and reef edges.
reef
Red Lionfish
Instantly recognizable for its fan-like, striped fins and venomous spines, the red lionfish is a native Indo-Pacific reef predator that has become a damaging invasive species in the Western Atlantic.
reef
Slender Giant Moray
The longest of all moray eel species, this extremely elongated, olive-grey eel patrols muddy estuaries and mangrove channels across the Indo-Pacific rather than typical coral reef.
brackish
Marbled Grouper
The marbled grouper is an uncommon western Atlantic reef fish with a distinctive dark, marbled or streaked pattern that gives way to a dark 'charcoal' belly, often seen near caves and drop-offs.
reef
Ornate Ghost Pipefish
The ornate ghost pipefish is a strikingly patterned reef fish covered in frilly skin extensions that let it blend seamlessly with crinoids and soft corals. It is one of the most photographed of the ghost pipefish species.
reef
Achilles Tang
A striking black surgeonfish with a bold orange-red teardrop marking near its tail and matching scalpel-like tail spine. It inhabits high-surf reef zones across the Pacific.
reef
Yellow-edged Moray
One of the largest reef morays, marked with an intricate maze-like pattern and a bright yellow-edged dorsal fin, hiding by day in rocky and coral crevices.
reef
Valentini Puffer
The Valentini Puffer is a small reef puffer marked by two bold black saddle patches on a white-and-tan body, a pattern also mimicked by an unrelated filefish.
reef