Teira Batfish, scientifically known as Platax teira, is a type of marine fish from the Ephippidae family. It’s also known as Longfin Batfish, Longfin Spadefish, or Round Faced Batfish.
This fish lives in the Indo-West Pacific region and can be found in different environments such as sheltered bays, deep offshore areas, and shipwrecks.
They often form small groups or large schools. As young fish, teira batfish gather around floating debris and join together when they find each other.
They can grow quite large and sometimes gather under Sargassum rafts that appear after the wet season.
Young teira batfish stay in shallow protected inner reefs while adults are found in lagoon and seaward reefs up to depths of 20 meters or more.
Though you can eat them, they aren’t highly prized for their taste.
Teira batfish are also not an important game fish. They are also not reef-safe for aquariums.
Teira Batfish Interesting Facts
- Teira batfish live in diverse environments, from sheltered bays to shipwrecks, and form small groups or large schools.
- Young ones prefer shallow inner reefs while adults dwell in lagoon and seaward reefs up to 20 meters deep.
- These fish have an amphidromous lifestyle, allowing them to move between fresh and saltwater environments.
- Adult teira batfish can grow up to 27.6 inches (70.0 centimeters) long and have distinctive dark bands across their eyes.
Teira Batfish Habitat
Teira batfish is found in the Indo-West Pacific region.
Its habitat stretches from the Red Sea and East Africa to Papua New Guinea, and from Australia’s southern coast to Japan’s Ryukyu Islands.
It has even been spotted in New Zealand’s Bay of Islands and the Persian Gulf.
This marine fish lives near reefs and has an amphidromous lifestyle, meaning it can move between fresh and saltwater environments.
Teira batfish typically dwells at depths of 3 to 25 meters (10 to 82 feet) in tropical waters ranging from 31°N to 36°S latitude and 23°E to 175°E longitude.
| Water Temperature: | Unknown |
| Water pH: | Unknown |
| Water Hardness: | Unknown |
Teira Batfish Physical Characteristics
Size: 27.6 inches (70.0 centimeters)
Teira batfish grow up to 27.6 inches (70.0 centimeters) in length. It has 5 to 6 spines on its dorsal (top) side and 28 to 37 soft rays along the same area.
On its anal (bottom) side, it has 3 spines and 22 to 28 soft rays. Adult teira batfish have a dark band across their eyes.
Their color is usually yellowish-silver or gray with black markings near the eye, fins, and belly.
They have a round, flat body that’s wider than it is long.
The head of large adults may develop a bony hump between the eyes which creates an almost vertical face shape.
The fish also have small teeth in their jaws and on their vomer bone but not on their palatine bones.
There are five pores on each side of their lower jaw, and they have smooth preopercle bones without any spines on their opercle bones.
Teira Batfish Scientific Classification
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Moroniformes |
| Family: | Ephippidae |
| Genus: | Platax |
| Scientific Name: | Platax teira |
| Also Known As: | Teira Batfish, Longfin Batfish, Longfin Spadefish, Round Faced Batfish |
| Conservation Status: | Least Concern |