Maldives Marine Life

Marine life of Maldivian waters

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Greater lizardfish
No photo available
Photo: Francis Day / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain (view on Wikimedia Commons)Historical illustration. Source: Day, Francis (1878) The Fishes of India. Volume 2.; Commons file: Saurida tumbil Day 117.jpg

Greater lizardfish

Saurida tumbil

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

English
Greater lizardfish
Scientific
Saurida tumbil
Dhivehi
No recorded Dhivehi name
Group
Reef fish
Family
Synodontidae (lizardfishes)
Maximum size
Up to about 60 cm (fork length)
Depth and habitat
Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats (usually 20 to 60 m)
IUCN status
LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2015

Description

A cigar-shaped lizardfish, brown above and silvery below with faint crossbands, reaching about 60 cm. It lives on muddy bottoms and eats fish, crustaceans and squid.

Sources

Dhivehi name source: No Dhivehi name found in MRS 1997 (available chapters), FishBase (country: Maldives) or Dhivehi Wikipedia.