Scolopsis vosmeri
Common on reefs around Koh Phi Phi and Goa, this small silvery bream shows year-round in water from 25 to 29 C.
A small, deep-bodied fish that rarely tops 12 cm, with a silvery-grey flank that shades to yellow near the tail and fins. The giveaway mark is the white cheek patch beneath the eye, sitting just below the single dark bar that crosses the eye itself, hence the 'monocle' name. It swims low over the reef, often alone or in loose small groups rather than tight schools.
Usually spotted picking over sand and rubble patches close to the reef base, hunting small invertebrates rather than holding position in open water. It tends to keep a low profile and drift away from divers rather than approach, and is easiest to spot during the day when it is actively foraging rather than sheltering.
The dark eye-bar and white cheek patch are shared across several monocle bream species, so the pairing of yellow tail-fins with that white cheek mark is the detail worth checking before logging it.
Sightings show no clear seasonal pattern, so it is best treated as a year-round species. It sits comfortably in water from about 25 to 29 C, which covers the typical diving season across Thailand and India without a strong hot or cool spike.
Reef neighbours a diver could mistake it for. Use the identification notes above to tell them apart.
Most reliably logged in Thailand, especially around Koh Phi Phi, Krabi, Koh Pha Ngan, Koh Tao and Phuket, with a strong second population in India around Goa and Karnataka. Sites in Koh Phi Phi and Goa turn it up most consistently, though it stays an uncommon find rather than a certainty at most locations.
Mapping where Whitecheek Monocle Bream is logged…
They turn up most often on reefs around Koh Phi Phi, Krabi and Koh Pha Ngan in Thailand, and around Goa and Karnataka in India. Sightings are logged across dozens of sites in both countries, though the fish stays uncommon at most of them.
There is no strong seasonal pattern in the sightings, so any time of year works. It favours water between about 25 and 29 C, which matches the standard diving season in Thailand and India.
Look for a small silvery fish under 12 cm with yellow tones near the tail, a dark bar through the eye, and a white patch just below the eye on the cheek. It usually stays low near sand or rubble rather than schooling in open water.
They are a small reef fish, typically reaching around 12 cm in length, so they are easy to overlook against busier, larger reef species.
No. They are a small, harmless bottom-feeding fish that tends to move away from divers rather than approach, with no venom or aggressive behaviour on record.
Site and sighting data is aggregated from diver logs, iNaturalist and GBIF. For taxonomy and conservation status:
Melon Butterflyfish
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