Barracuda fish belong to the Sphyraenidae family.  Consisting of more than 20 different species, Barracuda’s are predatory fish with long slim bodies, small scales, two separated dorsal fins, a jutting lower jaw and a large mouth with razor sharp teeth.  Their body is tapered at the ends and thicker in the middle.  Most species have…

Trumpetfish belong to the Aulostomidae family and the Aulostomus genus.  Strictly a marine fish, there are three species within the family: the Atlantic trumpetfish, the Atlantic cornetfish and the Chinese trumpetfish.  They’re found in the tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic, Indian and western Pacific oceans.  They live in seagrass beds or among coral…

Bannerfish belong to the genus Heniochus.  They are a type of butterflyfish, making them part of the Chaetodontidae family.   There are at least eight known species of bannerfish: pennant coralfish (or longfin bannerfish), threeband pennantfish, false moorish idol (or schooling bannerfish), Red Sea bannerfish, masked bannerfish, phantom bannerfish, singular bannerfish, and horned bannerfish.  All species…

Blenny fish are part of the order Perciformes and the suborder Blenniodei.  “True blennies” exist within six different families of the suborder.  Blennies in the Blenniidae family include combtomb and scaleless blennies.  The Chaenopsidae family has flag and tube blennies.  The Clinidae family has kelpfishes and scaled blennies.  The Dactyloscopidae has sand stargazers.  The Labrisomidae…

Sea turtles are reptiles that belong to the order Testudines.  Seven different species of sea turtle exist today.  Sea turtles have been around for at least 110 million years.  Unlike tortoises, the shell of a sea turtle is more streamlined for swimming through the water, and they cannot retract their legs or neck into their…

Manta rays belong to the Mobulidae family.  They are elasmobranchs, cartilaginous fish, related to sharks and skates.  Their common name “manta” is also their genus name.  There are two species of manta ray, the giant manta ray (Manta birostris) and the smaller reef manta ray (Manta alfredi).  Both rays have a diamond-shaped body, long pectoral…

Anthias are part of the Serranidae family, more specifically the subfamily Anthiinae.  Within the subfamily, there are at least 17 different genera and 170 different species of anthias.  The species can be found in all tropical oceans and seas.  Divers may also refer to them as reeffish, wreckfish, or jewelfish.  They mainly feed off of…

Whales are mammals that belong in the Cetacea order, alongside dolphins and porpoises.  There are two sub-orders of whales: baleen and toothed whales.  The baleen whales get the name from the comb-link fringe on their upper jaw.  This fringe, called baleen, is designed for filtering plankton and other small fish and crustaceans that may pass…

Angelfish belong to the order Perciformes, and marine angelfish in particular belong in the Pomacanthidae family.  There are at least 7 genera and 86 species of marine angelfish in this family.  Freshwater angelfish belong in the same order, but in the Cichlidae family instead.  Freshwater angelfish are found in South America in places like the…

Eels are teleost fish that belong to the order Anguilliformes.  Over 800 species of eels exist, some of which are classified as the more common freshwater eel, and others as marine eels.  The two types of marine eels are Moray eels and Conger eels.  The most apparent characteristic of eels is their elongated body.  Both…