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Tasselled Leatherjacket
Chaetodermis penicilligera (Cuvier, 1817)
Above and below: A Tasselled Leatherjacket at a depth of 3 m, inside the council pool net, Manly Cove, Sydney, New South Wales, March 2006. Photo © J. Jenkins. View larger image.
A Tasselled Leatherjacket caught by K. Graham on the FRV Kapala. Photo: K. Graham © NSWDPI. View larger image.
The Tasselled Leatherjacket can be recognised by its deep, compressed body which has a variable cover of dermal flaps. It has a large caudal fin and like most other leatherjackets, it has a strong first dorsal fin spine.
The fish is usually brown with a series of black lines on the head and body. There may be bright blue spots and dashes on the body, some of which border the black lines. Two black blotches may be present on the side of the body, the anteriormost is positioned above the pectoral fin base.
This species grows to at least 21 cm in length.
It is sometimes seen by divers in weedy habitats, but is also taken occasionally in trawls at depths of over 50 m.
The Tasselled Leatherjacket occurs in coastal marine waters of the Indo-West Pacific. In Australia it is known from south-western Western Australia, around the tropical north of the country, and south to the New South Wales central coast.
This species has also been called the Prickly Leatherjacket.
Related links
- View the Family Monacanthidae list
- View the Leatherjackets list
Further reading
- Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 292.
- Hutchins, J.B. 2001. Monacanthidae in Carpenter, K.E. & V.H. Niem (Eds). FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes. The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. Volume 6. Bony Fishes part 4 (Labridae to Latimeriidae), estuarine crocodiles, sea turtles, sea snakes and marine mammals. FAO, Rome. Pp. iii-v, 3381-4218.
- Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
- Kuiter, R.H. 1993. Coastal Fishes of South-Eastern Australia. Crawford House Press. Pp. 437.
