Pentaceropsis recurvirostris
Spot this odd long-nosed fish in cool water reefs across Victoria and South Australia, uncommon but a reliable find year-round at 13.9-18.2C.
Instantly odd-looking thanks to a long, tubular snout that gives the whole head a pointed, almost anteater-like profile. Body is deep and laterally compressed (flattened side to side), silver-grey with faint darker bars, reaching around 35 cm. It swims with a slow, deliberate action, often angled nose-down as it probes the reef, which combined with that snout shape makes it hard to mistake for anything else in Australian temperate waters.
Usually seen moving slowly and low over reef structure, nose tilted down as it works crevices and sponge-covered rock for food. It's an unhurried, approachable fish that doesn't dart off when divers close in, making it easy to get a good look at that snout. Most logs describe it as uncommon rather than common, so it tends to be a nice surprise on a dive rather than something you'll see on every reef.
That elongated snout lets it reach into narrow gaps in rock and sponge that a blunter-mouthed fish simply can't access, giving it a feeding niche most reef fish around it don't compete for.
Sightings show no clear seasonal pattern, so it's considered a year-round find. Observed water temperatures of 13.9 to 18.2C line up with the cooler temperate waters of southern Australia in any month, rather than a specific summer or winter window.
This is an Australian temperate-reef specialist, most commonly logged in Victoria, with strong numbers also recorded in South Australia and Tasmania. Divers also find it, less frequently, in Western Australia and New South Wales, making it effectively a southern Australian endemic experience.
Mapping where Longsnout Boarfish is logged…
Southern Australia is the place, with Victoria the strongest region by far, followed by South Australia and Tasmania. Western Australia and New South Wales also produce sightings, but less often.
There's no strong seasonal signal in the data, so they're logged year-round. They sit in cool water between roughly 14 and 18C, which suits southern Australia's temperate reefs at any time of year.
Look for a deep, flattened silver-grey body around 35 cm long with an unmistakably long, tube-shaped snout. It typically swims slowly with its nose angled down towards the reef, which is the easiest tell.
They reach around 35 cm in length, a solidly built mid-sized reef fish rather than a small or tiny species.
No, they pose no threat to divers. They're slow-moving and generally unbothered by divers approaching for a closer look.
Its extended, tubular snout is the standout feature, letting it probe deep into rocky crevices and sponge growth for food that other reef fish can't reach.
Site and sighting data is aggregated from diver logs, iNaturalist and GBIF. For taxonomy and conservation status:
Soldierfish
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