Maldives Marine Life

Marine life of Maldivian waters

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Indian 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: Saurus indicus Day 117.jpg

Indian lizardfish

Synodus indicus

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

English
Indian lizardfish
Scientific
Synodus indicus
Dhivehi
No recorded Dhivehi name
Group
Reef fish
Family
Synodontidae (lizardfishes)
Maximum size
Up to about 33 cm (total length); commonly 12 cm
Depth and habitat
Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 20 to 100 m
IUCN status
LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2018

Description

A lizardfish, dusky pink above with pale blue-grey blotches and a yellow tail, reaching about 33 cm. It buries itself in current-swept sand below about 20 m.

Sources

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