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Australian Wildlife

  Unicorn Leatherjacket (Aluterus monoceros)





Unicorn Leatherjacket | Aluterus monoceros photo
Unicorn Leatherjacket (Aluterus monoceros). Fairy Bower, Manly, NSW

Image by Richard Ling - Some rights reserved.    (view image details)







FISH FACTS

Description
The Unicorn Leatherjacket is pale brown or grey mottled with small brown spots on the upper parts of the head and body. The snout is convex curved in adults. The dorsal and anal fins are pale yellow to light brown. The tail is brown. They are usually solitary or in pairs, sometimes in larger groups of five or six.

Size
length to 76cm. Weight to 2.7kg

Habitat
Open ocean, reefs adjacent to deep water. Usually found in waters less than 10m, although range to 50m. Juveniles often seen under cover of floating material. Adults sometimes seen in groups under weed-rafts.

Food
feeds on small organisms on se floor

Range
The Unicorn Leatherjacket is found in tropical waters around the world.



Classification
Class:Actinopterygii
Order:Tetraodontiformes
Family:Monacanthidae
Genus:Aluterus
Species:monoceros
Common Name:Unicorn Leatherjacket

Relatives in same Genus
  Scribbled Leatherjacket (A. scriptus)