Tubemouth

Interesting Info

• The Tubemouth is one of Australia’s strangest little reef fishes, named for its long tubular snout that looks like a drinking straw.
• It is found only in southern Australia, from Perth in Western Australia across to Port Phillip Bay in Victoria and around Tasmania.
• The body is long and slender, coloured green to brown with silvery sides, often showing faint stripes that help it blend with seagrass.
• That straw-like snout is used like a vacuum cleaner—it sucks up tiny crustaceans, worms, and plankton from among the seagrass blades.
• Tubemouths live in shallow coastal waters, especially in dense seagrass meadows and sheltered bays down to 20 m (65 ft).
• They are shy, darting into weed cover when disturbed, and are rarely seen far from seagrass shelter.
• The Tubemouth is one of just a handful of species in the family Odacidae, a group of herbivorous and omnivorous fishes unique to southern Australia and New Zealand.
• Males may develop brighter colours during breeding, showing greens and blues that shimmer in shallow sunlight.
• Breeding occurs in summer, when pairs spawn in seagrass beds and eggs drift freely until hatching.
• Juveniles are especially secretive, staying in very shallow seagrass beds close to shore.
• Predators include larger reef fish, squid, and seabirds that hunt in seagrass meadows.
• The lifespan is not well studied but is probably around 5–7 years, similar to other small odacid fishes.
• Divers and snorkellers may spot them hovering delicately above seagrass, their narrow snouts poking between blades.
• Because they are so dependent on healthy seagrass, Tubemouths are considered good indicators of seagrass ecosystem health.