Razorfish

ID points

• Body thin as a blade, with a black stripe along the side
• Hangs vertically head-down and swims upside down
• Often in small groups sheltering among the long spines of sea urchins

Basics

Family

Centriscidae

Length

10–15 cm

Depth

1-30 m

Regions

Indo-Pacific reefs

Distribution

Shallow tropical reef flats of the Indo-Pacific

Habitat

Shallow reef flats and seagrass

Diet

Small planktonic crustaceans

Easily confused with

CornetfishBody long and thin like a tube, the snout making up a third of itFirefish GobyFront half creamy white, shading to orange-red at the rearGhost PipefishBody covered in fringed skin flaps, looking like floating debris

Fun fact

The razorfish has a body as thin as a blade and spends its whole life swimming vertically, head down. Groups of them line up among the spines of sea urchins, and the dark stripe along the body mimics a blade of seagrass perfectly.