Moorish Idol

Photo: cello caruso-turiello · CC BY

Moorish idols form mixed feeding groups with other butterflyfish species on the passage reef, their long trailing dorsal filaments and bold black-white-yellow banding making them among the most visually distinctive reef fish in the Indo-Pacific. Unlike many reef fish, Moorish idols have a pelagic larval phase lasting several months, giving them among the widest geographic ranges of any coral reef fish and contributing to the high genetic connectivity between Fijian reef populations. They use their long snouts to probe crevices for sponges and encrusting organisms that other fish cannot access.