Maldives Marine Life

Marine life of Maldivian waters

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Tomato hind
No photo available
Photo: Hugues Evano (IFREMER, Délégation océan Indien (DOI), Département Ressources Biologiques et Environnement (RBE), F-97420 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0 (view on Wikimedia Commons)

Tomato hind

Cephalopholis sonnerati

Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).

English
Tomato hind
Scientific
Cephalopholis sonnerati
Dhivehi
ވެލި ފާނަVeli faana
Group
Groupers and snappers
Family
Epinephelidae (groupers; formerly in Serranidae)
Maximum size
Up to about 57 cm (total length); commonly 30 cm
Depth and habitat
Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 10 to 150 m (usually 20 to 150 m)
IUCN status
LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2017

Description

A deep-bodied grouper, tomato-red to reddish brown with dense orange-red to violet spots or wavy lines on the head; colour varies a lot with depth and age. It lives on deep lagoon reefs and steep outer slopes, usually below 20 m, often around coral heads with cleaning stations. It feeds on small fish and crustaceans.

In the Maldives

Dhivehi name veli faana (MRS 1997). Taken in the Maldivian handline reef-fish fishery.

Sources

Dhivehi name source: Thaana from the Dhivehi Wikipedia article 'ވެލި ފާނަ' (derived from the MRS 1997 Dhivehi edition). No published Latin-script form found; 'Veli faana' is Pax's transliteration of the Thaana (Malé Latin conventions). FishBase also lists 'Ryfana' under India (Minicoy/Lakshadweep Mahl dialect); not used. FLAG: Latin form is a transliteration, not a published spelling.