Its fins are transparent, and that is a real advantage rather than a curiosity.
A fish's outline is what a predator finds first, and fins are the worst part of it: they stick out, they move, and they extend the silhouette well beyond the solid body. Making them clear removes that. A fish with translucent fins blotched only here and there with red reads as a smaller, more compact object than it is, and the parts that catch an eye are broken into disconnected patches instead of a continuous edge.
Lots of reef fish use versions of this. Clear fin margins are common, and the animals that take it furthest are the ambush hunters that need to close on prey without registering as a fish at all - which is what this one does, drifting up on small fish and crustaceans among coral.
It lives in this sea and the 🌊 Gulf of Aden and nowhere else, up to twenty-two centimeters, with a pointed snout and a body that runs from reddish to olive depending on where it is sitting.
The genus. Oxycheilinus Gill 1862 - oxy (sharp). ETYFish
The species. Oxycheilinus mentalis (Rüppell 1828) - relating to the chin. ETYFish
- translucent fins blotched with red, unusually clear against the light
- reddish to olive body with a pointed snout
- juveniles patterned differently from adults
- up to 22 cm
Why it's threatened
There are no major threats known for this species.
Threat classification from the IUCN Red List.
