MONACANTHIDAE


Aluterus scriptus
(photo by Ukkrit Satapoomin)


Aluterus scriptus
(Osbeck, 1765)
Scrawled Leatherjacket

D II + 43-49; A 46-52; P1 13-15.

Body elongate and strongly compressed; snout long, the dorsal and ventral profile concave; mouth supraterminal. Caudal fin long and rounded. Color: body olive brown to gray with irregular blue lines and spots Size: maximum 75 cm. Distribution: circumtropical. Remarks: feeds on various benthic organisms including algae, seagrasses, hydrozoans, gorgonians, colonial anemones, and tunicates.