Fish Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ fish species — freshwater, saltwater, reef, and pelagic — with habitat, size, diet, behavior, and how to tell them apart.
Yellow Tang
A brilliant all-yellow surgeonfish common on Pacific coral reefs, especially around Hawaii, easily recognized by its disc-shaped body and sharp tail spine.
reef
Kole Tang
A compact, striped surgeonfish with a golden eye-ring, using bristle-like teeth to sweep detritus from reef rock.
reef
Purple Tang
A vivid violet surgeonfish with a contrasting yellow tail, native to Red Sea coral reefs.
reef
Naso Tang
A large surgeonfish with bright orange lips and a yellow tail-base marking, grazing algae along Indo-Pacific reef slopes.
reef
Blue Tang
A vivid royal-blue reef fish with a black palette-shaped marking and a bright yellow tail, popularized worldwide after appearing in animated film.
reef
Regal Tang
An unmistakable royal-blue surgeonfish with a black palette pattern and bright yellow tail, popularized worldwide as the character Dory, commonly seen darting among branching corals.
reef
Clown Tang
A vividly striped surgeonfish with alternating blue, black, and yellow horizontal lines, one of the most aggressively territorial herbivores on shallow Indo-Pacific reef crests.
reef
Whitecheek Tang
A dark brown to black surgeonfish set apart by a bright white patch beneath the eye and a narrow orange tail band, commonly seen grazing rubble zones on Indo-Pacific reefs.
reef
Chevron Tang
A dark surgeonfish covered in fine orange chevron-shaped striping that fades to plain brown with age, prized for its dramatic juvenile pattern.
reef
Achilles Tang
A striking black surgeonfish with a bold orange-red teardrop marking near its tail and matching scalpel-like tail spine. It inhabits high-surf reef zones across the Pacific.
reef
Sohal Tang
A powerfully built surgeonfish endemic to the Red Sea and nearby Arabian waters, marked by bold blue and black striping and known for fiercely defending shallow reef flats.
reef
Scopas Tang
A deep-bodied, disc-shaped surgeonfish usually seen in muted brown to gray tones, valued on reefs and in aquariums alike as an efficient, hardy algae grazer.
reef
Sailfin Tang
A striped surgeonfish famous for its oversized, sail-like dorsal and anal fins, common on Indo-Pacific coral reefs.
reef
Orangeshoulder Tang
A gray-bodied surgeonfish marked by a bold orange patch behind the gill cover, often seen grazing sandy rubble zones adjacent to Indo-Pacific coral reefs.
reef
Convict Tang
A pale gray surgeonfish marked with six or seven bold black vertical bars, resembling a prisoner's uniform, that grazes algae in large schools.
reef
Blonde Naso Tang
A striking unicornfish with a gray body, black-and-yellow facial markings, and a bright yellow blaze along the back, best known in the aquarium trade as the Indian Ocean's 'blonde' color form.
reef
Powder Blue Tang
A vivid powder-blue surgeonfish with a black facial mask and white throat patch, common on shallow reef edges across the Indian Ocean.
reef
Yellow Seahorse
A widespread and highly variable Indo-Pacific seahorse, commonly seen in bright yellow though also occurring in black, orange, or mottled brown, found from mangrove estuaries to coral reefs.
reef
Yellow Boxfish
The Yellow Boxfish is a cube-shaped reef fish, bright yellow with black spots as a juvenile, that swims with slow, hovering movements thanks to its rigid armored body.
reef
Yellow Jack
A reef-associated western Atlantic jack easily recognized by the bright yellow wash on its fins and tail, often seen patrolling reef edges in small schools.
reef
Yellow Perch
A golden-yellow freshwater fish marked by dark vertical bars and orange-tinged fins, native to lakes and slow-moving rivers across North America. It is one of the most abundant and widely recognized panfish species.
freshwater
Yellow Stingray
A small, boldly patterned stingray of the western Atlantic and Caribbean, often seen resting on sand near coral reefs and seagrass beds in shallow, clear water.
reef
Yellow-edged Moray
One of the largest reef morays, marked with an intricate maze-like pattern and a bright yellow-edged dorsal fin, hiding by day in rocky and coral crevices.
reef
Yellow Watchman Goby
A bright yellow burrowing goby that forms a cooperative partnership with pistol shrimp, sharing a burrow while acting as lookout for the nearly blind shrimp.
reef