These are herbivorous fishes that are important as food fish. They have venomous spines but their flesh is excellent. They recruit in very large numbers, often with clouds of thousands of small individuals. Adults live in small groups of about 5-10 individuals.
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Siganus spinus, Little Spinefoot
- Depth 1 – 50 m, usually 1 – 20 m
- Can adopt a number of camouflage patterns involving off-white, pale gray to blackish, and various shades of brown. Basic vermiculate pattern, Iris golden dissected by a chocolate cross
- Adults inhabit shallow coral reef flats, also found in rivers. Max length 28 cm; common length 18 cm
- Occur in small schools (usually less than 10 individuals)
- Juveniles gather in large numbers in corals with algae growth at their bases
- Initially browse on fine-textured (filamentous) algae, switching to coarser algae with increasing size
- Adults and juveniles are both diurnal feeders (they feed in the daytime)
- High resilience, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months, Low vulnerability
- Venomous spines