Schuettea woodwardi
A small silvery reef fish logged almost exclusively off Western Australia in cool 17 to 21C water, year-round and usually in ones or twos.
Small at around 17cm, with a deep, laterally compressed, disc-like body that reads almost coin-shaped in the water. Colouring is silvery overall, often with a faint olive or grey wash on the back, and the fins are fairly plain without bold bars or spots. The steep forehead and small mouth give it a slightly blunt-faced profile compared with other reef fish of similar size.
Usually seen as single fish or loose small groups moving over reef and rocky terrain rather than tucked into crevices. It is logged as uncommon at most sites, so sightings tend to be brief, unhurried passes rather than lingering encounters, and it does not appear to react strongly to divers. Most reports come from open-water swims along temperate reef structure rather than caves or overhangs.
It belongs to a small, poorly documented group of southern-hemisphere pomfrets, and there is little published behavioural detail beyond diver sightings, which makes every logged encounter useful data for understanding its range.
Sightings show no clear seasonal pattern, and it turns up year-round in the cool 17.4 to 20.8C water it seems to prefer. Plan around water temperature and site access rather than a specific month.
This one is essentially a Western Australia specialty, with divers logging it consistently across sites in that region and almost nowhere else. If you are diving temperate reefs and rocky ledges along the WA coast, keep an eye on open water near structure rather than deep in coral.
Mapping where Western Pomfred is logged…
Almost all logged sightings come from Western Australia, making it a regional speciality rather than a fish you will find on tropical reef trips elsewhere.
There is no strong seasonal pattern in sightings, and it is recorded across a temperature range of about 17.4 to 20.8C, so it is realistic to look for it year-round in Western Australian waters.
Look for a small, silvery, disc-shaped fish around 17cm long with a deep, flattened body and a fairly plain fin pattern. The steep forehead and blunt face help separate it from more elongated reef fish nearby.
They are a small species, typically around 17cm in length, so spotting one takes a bit of attention against open reef backgrounds.
No, they pose no known danger to divers and are simply a small, silvery fish to watch drift past on the reef.
Most sites report it as uncommon rather than common, with a smaller number of sites logging it as rare, so a sighting is a nice surprise rather than a guarantee.
Site and sighting data is aggregated from diver logs, iNaturalist and GBIF. For taxonomy and conservation status:
Soldierfish
3,621 sites
