No photo available
Dusky batfish
Platax pinnatus
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
Possibly present in the Maldives
- English
- Dusky batfish
- Scientific
- Platax pinnatus
- Dhivehi
- Baiypolhi mas
- Group
- Reef fish
- Maximum size
- Up to about 45 cm (total length)
- Depth and habitat
- Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 15 to 30 m
- IUCN status
- LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2023
- Record in the Maldives
- Possibly present
Description
A batfish whose juveniles are jet black with a bright orange-red border around the body and fins, mimicking a toxic flatworm; adults are dull silver, reaching about 45 cm. Adults live under overhangs of steep reef slopes.
In the Maldives
Listed by FishBase only as 'possibly present' in the Maldives.
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Platax-pinnatus.html
- fishbase.se /comnames/CommonNamesList.php?ID=5738&GenusName=Platax&SpeciesName=pin
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Platax_pinnatus03.jpg
Dhivehi name source: FishBase common names (country: Maldives) give 'Baiypolhi mas' (Latin script). FLAG: single source.