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Five-lined Cardinalfish
Cheilodipterus quinquelineatus Cuvier, 1828
A Five-lined Cardinalfish at a depth of 8 m, Mantis Reef, Wreck Bay, far northern Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, November 2001. View larger image.
A Five-lined Cardinalfish photographed at night, at a depth of 8 m, Osprey Reef, Coral Sea, November 1998. View larger image.
The Five-lined Cardinalfish is whitish with five black stripes on the sides of the body. The caudal peduncle is yellow with a black spot at the base of the middle rays of the caudal fin.
This species has large canine teeth.
It grows to 12 cm in length.
The Five-lined Cardinalfish occurs on coral and rocky reefs of tropical (and some temperate) waters of the Indo-West Pacific.
In Australia it is known from southern Western Australia, around the tropical north and south to the central coast of New South Wales.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
Further reading
- Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 292.
- Allen, G.R. & R. Swainston. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 201.
- Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
- Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. New Holland. Pp. 433.
- Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. Pp. 437.
- Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & R.C. Steene. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Crawford House Press. Pp. 557.
