The Lunate Anthias, scientifically referred to as Pseudanthias lunulatus, bears a nomenclature rooted in Greek, where "pseudes" translates to "false" and "anthias" pertains to a type of fish akin to Sparus aurata. This marine species is predominantly associated with reef environments and can attain a maximum length of 8 cm, thriving within tropical climates.
Lunate Anthias typically form small groups and inhabit the outer reef areas at depths ranging from 40 to 75 meters. The species is distinguished by having 10 dorsal spines, 15 to 16 dorsal soft rays, 3 anal spines, and 7 anal soft rays. Generally, these groups consist of one male and several females, with the males exhibiting a distinctive Y-shaped yellow-orange bar below the dorsal fin.
Geographically, the Lunate Anthias is found across the Indo-West Pacific region, with specific occurrences documented in the 🌊 Red Sea, along the coast of 🇸🇴 Somalia, and in regions such as 🇲🇺 Mauritius, the 🇲🇻 Maldives, and Bali (🇮🇩 Indonesia), 🇮🇩 Indonesia.
Why it's threatened
There are no known pervasive threats to this species at this time.
Threat classification from the IUCN Red List.
