Chromis notata
Small grey-brown damselfish with a white tail spot, common on rocky reefs in Sai Kung, Hong Kong and Jeju Island year-round.
A small, deep-bodied damselfish around 12 cm, greyish brown overall with a distinctive pale white or pearly spot at the base of the tail, which is the quickest ID mark. The body is oval and slightly compressed, with a forked tail and a single continuous dorsal fin typical of damselfish. Look for it hovering in loose groups just above rocky reef structure rather than sitting tight to the bottom.
Typically seen hovering in small, loose aggregations over rocky reef and boulder terrain, feeding on drifting plankton in midwater rather than picking at the substrate. It keeps a bit of distance from divers but doesn't scatter dramatically, making it an easy fish to hang back and watch rather than chase. Most logged sightings describe it as uncommon at a given site, so expect a handful of individuals rather than a dense school, though a few sites report it as common.
Like most chromis, it feeds mainly on zooplankton picked out of the water column, which is why you'll usually find it stationed a metre or two off the reef facing into any current rather than grazing algae like many of its damselfish relatives.
Sightings don't show a strong seasonal pattern, and with a recorded temperature range of roughly 19 to 28.5C, it's present across a wide swing of conditions, so divers can reasonably expect it year-round at these sites rather than in one narrow window.
Reef neighbours a diver could mistake it for. Use the identification notes above to tell them apart.
Most reliably logged around Sai Kung in Hong Kong, which carries the bulk of the recorded sightings, with a second strong cluster around Jeju Island in South Korea. A smaller number of records come from Guangdong in China, making this largely a temperate to subtropical rocky-reef fish of the northwest Pacific.
Mapping where Pearl-spot Chromis is logged…
They're most consistently reported around Sai Kung in Hong Kong, with another solid cluster of sightings at Jeju Island in South Korea, and occasional records from Guangdong, China.
There's no clear seasonal pattern in the sightings, and they tolerate a wide temperature range from around 19 to 28.5C, so they're a reasonable year-round sighting at these sites.
Look for a small, grey-brown damselfish about 12 cm long with a pale, pearly spot at the base of the tail. It's usually seen hovering just off rocky reef structure in small, loose groups rather than resting on the bottom.
They reach about 12 cm, a typical size for a damselfish, so expect a compact, easily overlooked fish rather than anything reef-dominating.
No, they pose no threat to divers. They keep their distance and are simply worth watching hover and feed on plankton over the reef.
Site and sighting data is aggregated from diver logs, iNaturalist and GBIF. For taxonomy and conservation status:
Yellowtail Clownfish
3,523 sites
