Yellow-spotted sawtail

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Yellow-spotted sawtail

Photo of a yellow spotted sawtail
An adult yellow-spotted sawtail
(Photo: JE Randall)

Scientific name

Prionurus maculatus
Description
  • small yellow dots over a blueish body
  • may have streaky, vertical yellow bands along the centre of the body from the pectoral fins to the tail
  • three hard spiny plates on each side of the tail base centred in black spots
Family name

Acanthuridae (surgeonfishes)
Family description
  • this family includes surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and sawtails
  • they are unique in having spines on the base of their tails which are used for defence
  • a few are venomous and all can inflict painful wounds
  • fish in this family have compressed (flattened) bodies, small mouths and very small close-set scales
  • surgeonfishes include all species of the genera Acanthurus and Ctenochaetus
  • unicornfish are a subset of this family and include all species of the genera Naso and Prionurus
  • representative species of each genus have been illustrated in this guide but there are more species you may catch. Please check current rules and regulations for specific size and in-possession limits
Size and bag limits
  • minimum size 25 cm
  • combined bag limit of 5 for all surgeonfish species
  • in addition, total bag limit of 20 for all Coral Reef Fin Fish

Further information

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Page maintained by Brendan Johnson
Last updated 23 November 2011

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