Fish of Koh Tao: Your Guide to What You’ll See While Diving with Chalok Reef Divers
Introduction
This is the fifth installment in our blog series exploring the vibrant and diverse marine life around Koh Tao. In this part, we’ll uncover more remarkable marine creatures, from peculiar pufferfish to colorful wrasses. Every dive is a chance to meet these underwater characters up close!
Blacktip Tuskfish
About: The Blacktip Tuskfish is a bold and inquisitive reef dweller, easily recognized by its sharp teeth and distinctive black tips on its fins. These fish are often seen roaming sandy bottoms or darting between coral heads.
How Common? Fairly common, especially in areas with mixed sand and coral.
Fun Fact: Blacktip Tuskfish are known to use tools! They’ve been observed smashing shells on rocks to access their prey.
Blotched Porcupinefish
About: The Blotched Porcupinefish is a round, spiky marvel that inflates itself when threatened. With its spotted body and large, expressive eyes, it’s a favorite among divers.
How Common? Occasionally seen, often hiding in crevices or under overhangs.
Fun Fact: Despite their cute appearance, their spines and potent toxins make them a formidable foe for predators.
Mapped Pufferfish
About: The Mapped Pufferfish is a stunning species with intricate, map-like patterns on its body. These fish are slow movers, often found near the seabed or grazing on sponges.
How Common? Fairly common, particularly in sheltered reef areas.
Fun Fact: Like all pufferfish, they can inflate their bodies to deter predators, making them look like underwater balloons.
Specklefin Grouper
About: The Specklefin Grouper is a solitary predator with a body covered in speckled patterns. They’re often seen hiding in crevices or resting near coral heads, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
How Common? Fairly common, especially in deeper reef zones.
Fun Fact: Groupers have a unique ability to create suction with their mouths, allowing them to pull prey in with incredible speed.
Goldband Fusilier
About: The Goldband Fusilier is a vibrant schooling fish with shimmering scales and a golden stripe along its body. These fast swimmers are often seen in large groups near drop-offs.
How Common? Very common and a frequent sight on most dives.
Fun Fact: Fusiliers are an important part of the reef’s ecosystem, acting as a food source for larger predators.
Harlequin Sweetlips
About: The Harlequin Sweetlips is an eye-catching fish with its spotted body and playful swimming style. Juveniles are particularly fascinating, with exaggerated movements that mimic floating leaves to confuse predators.
How Common? Occasionally seen but always a delight to encounter.
Fun Fact: Sweetlips get their name from their large, pouty lips, which they use to sift through the sand for food.
Whitebelly Damselfish
About: The Whitebelly Damselfish is a feisty little reef dweller with a striking white belly and bold black markings. These territorial fish can often be seen chasing away intruders near their chosen coral home.
How Common? Very common and easy to spot.
Fun Fact: Damselfish have a symbiotic relationship with algae, which they cultivate and protect on the reef.
Sling-Jaw Wrasse
About: The Sling-Jaw Wrasse is a fascinating predator known for its extendable jaw, which can project outward to snatch prey. These colorful fish are often found darting among coral heads.
How Common? Occasionally seen but a thrill to spot.
Fun Fact: The jaw of a Sling-Jaw Wrasse can extend to almost half its body length, making it one of the most unique feeders in the ocean.
Doublebar Rabbitfish
About: The Doublebar Rabbitfish is a striking herbivore with bold black bars running along its body. These fish are often seen in pairs, grazing on algae and helping maintain the health of the reef.
How Common? Fairly common, particularly in areas with abundant algae growth.
Fun Fact: Rabbitfish spines are venomous, so predators think twice before attempting to snack on them.
Red Squirrelfish
About: The Red Squirrelfish is a nocturnal beauty with vibrant red scales and large eyes, perfect for seeing in low light. These fish are usually found hiding in crevices during the day and emerging at night to hunt.
How Common? Fairly common, especially on night dives.
Fun Fact: Squirrelfish communicate by producing sounds with their swim bladders, making them one of the reef’s chatty inhabitants.
Conclusion
In this fifth part of our series, we’ve explored a mix of quirky, bold, and colorful marine life. From the tool-using Blacktip Tuskfish to the chatty Red Squirrelfish, Koh Tao’s reefs continue to amaze and delight, the fish are even more impressive in real life, so come dive Koh Tao with us see how much better they are than their AI counterparts above. Stay tuned for the next installment, where we’ll uncover even more incredible marine creatures waiting to be discovered!