Palette surgeonfish
Paracanthurus hepatus
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Palette surgeonfish
- Scientific
- Paracanthurus hepatus
- Dhivehi
- ދޮންނޫ ކާޅުDhon noo kaalhu
- Group
- Reef fish
- Maximum size
- Up to about 31 cm (total length) (FishBase); MRS 1997 gives max. 31 cm
- Depth and habitat
- Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 2 to 40 m (usually 10 to 40 m)
- IUCN status
- LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2010
Description
A bright royal-blue surgeonfish with a black palette-shaped marking along the side and a yellow tail. It lives on clear, current-swept outer reefs, hovering in loose groups a metre or two above the bottom and feeding on zooplankton. When alarmed, juveniles dive into the branches of cauliflower-like corals.
In the Maldives
Dhivehi name dhon noo kaalhu (MRS 1997). MRS notes it is not common in the Maldives and advises that it should not be caught.
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Paracanthurus-hepatus.html
- fao.org /4/AD471E/AD471E00.htm
- dv.wikipedia.org /wiki/ދޮންނޫ_ކާޅު
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Blue_tang_(Paracanthurus_hepatus)_02.jpg
Dhivehi name source: M.R.S. (1997) Fishes of the Maldives (FAO/BOBP MAG/21) gives 'Dhon noo kaalhu' (Latin form). Thaana from the Dhivehi Wikipedia article 'ދޮންނޫ ކާޅު' (derived from the MRS 1997 Dhivehi edition); it matches the Latin form. FishBase also lists 'Voularg' under India (Minicoy/Lakshadweep Mahl dialect); not used. FLAG: the source states no traditional name was recorded and this descriptive name was coined for the book; it is not an established fishermen's name.