Bronze to greyish-brown in colour above, and pale below, with a indistinct band anteriorly on side from pelvic fin to above pectoral fin.  The upper teeth of adult males are longer and more hooked than in females.  Grows to approximately 2.95 m.  The Bronze Whaler Sharks occur in shallow coastal waters.

The Bronze Whaler Shark is most abundant in Australia between Bass Strait and Albany in the west and is the most common species of Carcharhinus in South Australian and Victorian waters.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Carcharhinus brachyurus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 23 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/2883

Brown Spotted Wrasse
pseudolabrus parilus

Dark reddish-brown or deep chocolate-brown with a broken whitish band along side below lateral-line.  Females and juveniles colour from pale greenish to reddish-brown and have five obscure brownish bars on back between dorsal fin and lateral line.  Inhabits shallow rocky reefs, and is also common in seagrass beds on the west coast.

Endemic to southern Australia from Queencliff, Victoria to Shark Bay in Western Australia.

Castelnaus Wrasse
dotalabrus aurantiacus

Territorial behaviour, with individuals being active during the day, swimming almost vertically in a characteristic bobbing fashion.  They seek shelter at night by burying in the sand.  Males are variable in colour from pale reddish-brown, yellowish brown, bright green to orange with five irregular dark brown or greyish bars on sides.  Growth is to a total length of 15 centimetres, with most smaller.

Endemic to temperate waters of southern Australia from eastern and northern Tasmania, Wilson's Promontory to South Australia and south-western Australia.

Source:
Barry C. Russell, Martin F. Gomon & Dianne J. Bray, Dotalabrus aurantiacus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 23 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/228

Common Bullseye
pempheris multiradiata

Pale to dark brown or silvery with thick brow stripes along the scale lines. Juveniles are paler with black-tippped yellow pelvic fins.  This species usually shelter in caves and ledges during the day, venturing out at night to feed.  Found in habitats from shallow silty esturies to depths of 30 metres on rocky reefs.  Grows to 28 centreimetres in length.

Recorded from southern Australia marine waters from the central New South Wales coast to the south-west coast of Western Australia.

Source:
http://australianmuseum.net.au/bigscale-bullseye-pempheris-multiradiata, accessed 23 Oct 2016

Dusty Morwong
dictyophora nigricans

Also known as Butterfish and recognised by its colouration.  Adults are greyish to brownish grey above and whitish below.  Juveniles are silvery with dark bands on the upper sides that extend through the dorsal fin.  Grows to 1.2 m in length.  Occurs on inshore rocky reefs and larvea are usually found in seagrass beds.

Endemic to the temperate waters from the central coasr of New Soputh Wales to south-western Western Australia.

Source:
http://australianmuseum.net.au/dusky-morwong-dactylophora-nigricans-richardson-1850, accessed 23 Oct 2016

Southern Eagle Ray
myliobatis australis

Brownish, grey, olive-green or yellowish above and paler below, with the upper surface having a variable pattern of grey-blue spots and bars.  Has a blunt snout and eyes on the side of the head.  The disc is wider than long and has pointed tips.  There is a small dorsal fin followed by a venomous stinging spine on the long whip-like tail.  Grows to 1.2 m in disc width and 2.4 m in total lenght.

Known from southern Queensland around the south of the country and north to the south-western coast of Western Australia and may also occur in New Zealand.

Source:
http://australianmuseum.net.au/southern-eagle-ray-myliobatis-australis-macleay-1881,accessed 23 Oct 2016

Globefish
diodan nichthemerus

Body is brown to greyish on top, white below, covered in long white to yellow spines and three to four dark vertical bands or blothes on sides.  Preferring sheltered reefs and often seen in weedy areas around jetties and pylons.  Grows to 30 centimetres, although most grow to 15 centimetres.

Endemic to temperate waters of southern Australia to about Fremantle, Western Australia and Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Diodon nicthemerus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 23 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/921

Gummy Shark
mustelus antarctius

Grey to greyish-brown above, often with small white spots which may or may not be very conspicuous.  Males mature at about 80 centimetres and females at about 85 centimetres.  Individuals may live to sixteen years.  Marketed as flake and are highly prized by sports fishers for their fighting abilities. Name refers to the flattened teeth arranged in a mosaic pattern.  Inhabits estuaries and coastal waters.

Endemic to southern Australia from southern Queensland to Shark Bay, Western Austral including Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Mustelus antarcticus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 23 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/3260

Gunn's Leatherjacket
eubalichthys gunnii

Have soft simple fins with comparatively small pectoral fins and truncated, fan-shaped tail fins and slender, retractable spine crowns the head.  Generally shallow water fish.

Distribution is along the southern coasts of Australia.

Source:
Fishbase.org, accessed 23 Oct 2016

 

Herring Cale
odax cyanomelas

Like most wrasses, this species changes both sex and colour throughout its like.  Males: pale blue to almost black with bright blue lines along the margins of the caudal fin, along the leading edge of the pectoral fin and on the snout.  Females: brown, darker above, with narrow blue wavy lines on the head; each scale with bluish whit spot, fins brown with wavy blue lines.  Have teeth in both jaws fused into a parrot-like beak with serrated edges.

Widespread in southern Australia from northern New South Wales to Western Australia, and around Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Odax cyanomelas in Fishes of Australia, accessed 23 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/301

Horseshoe Leatherjacket
meuschenia hippocrepis

Greenish above, yellowish below eith a distinct black horse-shoe shaped marking behind the pectoral fin.  Males are more brightly coloured than females and juveniles have indistinct marking on sides.  Grows to 60 centimetres.

Endemic to temperate waters of southern and western Australia, from Wilsons Promontory, Victoria to about Shark Bay, Western Australia.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Meuschenia hippocrepis in Fishes of Australia, accessed 23 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/807

Long Finned Pike
dinolestes lewini

Greyish to yellowish-brown above, silvery below and a yellow tail.  Grows to 90 centimetres, although usually to about 50 centimetres.  Inhabit coastal waters, including bays and esteries, near seagrass and exposed rocky reefs to 65 metres.

Endemic to ans widespread in southern Australia for about Newcastle, New South Wales, to the Perth region, Western Australia, and around Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J Bray, Dinolestes lewini in Fishes of Australia, accessed 23 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/4241

Longsnout Boarfish
pentaceropsis recurvirostris

Whitish with dark angled bands on sides, a dark band from the front of the dorsal fin to snout tip, large 'spiky-looking' fins and an almost tubular snout with a small mouth.  The fin spines are reportedly venomous.  Inhabit rocky reefs and sandy areas in bays harbours and along the coast.  Grows to 70 centimetres.

Endemic to temporate waters of southern Australia, from Botony Bay, New South Wales to Rottnest Island, Western Australia and around Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Pentaceropsis recurvirostris in Fishes of Australia, accessed 23 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/629

Magpie Perch
cheilodactylus nigripes

Body with three broad bands, the first on the head, the second encircling the body behind the head and the third crossing the anal fin and soft dorsal fin.  The middle band is dark in some individuals and light grey in others and the reddish tail of the juveniles darkens with maturity.  Inhabits sheltered and exposed coastal reefs, and found in caves and under overhangs.

Recorded from about Kiama, New South Wales to Albany, Western Australia, and also in northern New Zealand.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Cheilodactylus nigripes in Fishes of Australia, accessed 23 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/2418

Southern Maori Wrasse
ophthalmolepis lineolatus

Juveniles and females are reddish-orange on the upper half of the body, and reddish orange and white on the lower half.  Adult males are reddish-brown above and yellowish-brown below.  Inhabit exposed rocky reefs, with a preference for kelp and urchin barren habitats.  Grow to 47 centimetres. 

Endemic to the southern half of Australia, from southern Queensland to the Houtman Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Ophthalmolepis lineolata in Fishes of Australia, accessed 23 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/260

Moonlighter
tildon sexfasciatum

Easily recognised by the broad dark bands on the head, body and tail base.  Occurs is relatively shallow water to depths of about 30 metres.  Small juveniles have ocelli (false eyespot) on the soft dorsal and anal fins.  Juveniles inhabit shallow rocky reefs, while adults often occur on deeper coastal reefs.  Small Moonlighters are known to st up cleaning stations to removes parasites from other fishes.

Endemic to southern Australia at least from Wilsons Promontory, Victoria and northern Tasmania, to Jurien Bay, Western Australia.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Tilodon sexfasciatus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 23 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/527

Mosaic Leatherjacket
eubalichthys mosaicus

Adults are bluish to brownish-grey with yellow to yellowish-brown oval blotches, some forming lines along sides, or blue stripes along sides, and greenish fins.  Juveniles are pale grey to yellow or orange with blue lines/stripes and brownish oval blothes along sides, and often a white blothch near the pectoral fin.  Grows to a maximum size of 60 centimetres.

Endemic to the southern half of Australia from Noosa, Queenland to Dongara, Western Australia.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Eubalichthys mosaicus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/803

Old Wife
enoplosus armatus

Recognised by its very tall 'spikey' dorsal and anal fins, and prominent dark brow to black and white stripes.  The name "Old Wife" comes from the grinding or grating noise made when the fish is captured.  The species has venemous fin spines, however there is no associated venom gland.  Inhabit inshore rocky reefs, frequently among kelp beds.

Endemic to temperate marine waters of Australia from just south of Fraser Island, Queensland to South Passage, Westerm Australia and around Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Enoplosus armatus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/445

Pencilweed Whiting
siphonognathus beddomei

A very slender weed whiting with a distinctively elongated snout and body, somewhat like a Tubemouth.  Juveniles and females have a prodominant black spot near the top of the caudal fin base, while the more colourful male lack the caudal spot, having instead a similarly prominent black spot at the hind edge of each of the fan-like pelvic fin.  Occurs in areas with moderate wave action and individuals sometimes aggregate and appear to set up cleaning stations to remove external parasites from other fishes.

Endemic to southern Australa from the Gippsland Lakes region, Victoria to Rottnest Island (or perhaps further north), Western Australia.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Siphonognathus beddomei in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/303

Rainbow Cale
odax acroptilus

Males have two rows of broad dark blotches along the side, iridescent blue lines on the head, a blue submarginal band on the dorsal, anal and pelvic fins and elongate anterior dorsal-fin spines.  Females and juvenlies are yellowish to greenish or reddish-brown with dark markings on the sides.  Mostly found on exposed rocky reefs.

Distribution from Newcastle, New South Wales, along the southern coast of Australia to Bacon Island, Western Australia.  Including the northern coast of Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Odax acroptilus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/300

Red Mullet
upeneichthys vlamingii

A common and widespread goatfish in southern Australia.  Also known as Bluespotted Goatfish or Southern Goatfish.  Highly variable in colour - often whitish to pale pink with a brownish to reddish stripe alont the side, or reddish with bright blue spotts and wavy lines, and usually with blue spots on dashes on fins.  Inhabits bays, estuaries and sheltered coastal waters, usually on sand or rubble bottoms.  Very common in Spencer Gulf, South Australia and a popular foodfish in that State.

Widespread and often very common in southern Australia, including coastal waters of Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Upeneichthys vlamingii in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/596

Sea Sweep
scorpis aequipinnis

Colouration is grey, often with a tinge of blue, green or sometimes brown.  The belly is silvery.  Grows to 61 centimetre in length.   Found on rocky reefs in coastal waters, and seen in small aggregations to large schools often feeding on plankton, well above the seabed.

Known from the southern coast of New South Wales, around the south of Australia, and north to the central coast of Western Australia.

Senator Wrasse
pictilabrus laticlavius

Males are green with maroon or purplish stripes along the sides.  Females and juveniles are reddish to greenish-brown with a row of black spots above the lateral line, four to five dusky bars on the lower sides and a black spot on the rear of the dorsal fin.  Inhabits coastal reefs and algal beds.Senator wrasses are site-attached, meaning that individuals have a home-range.  Females have overlapping home-ranges and males are territorial during the breeding season.

Endemic to temperate waters of southern Australia from about Byron Bay, New South Wales, to the Houtman Abrolhos, Western Australia, and around Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Pictilabrus laticlavius in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/265

Silver Drummer
kyphosus sydneyanus

A popular angling fish and is regarded as a tough fighter.  Large olive, silvery-grey or bronzy drummer, darker above, paler below, with a broad maargin on the caudal fin, a rusty-coloured bar from the upper jaw across the gill cover, a pale bar under the eye and a small black dot at the lowe edge of the pectoral-fin base.  Inhabits exposed coastal rocky reefs and often occur in large schools in the surge zone.

Widely distributied in the southern half of Australia for Fraser Island, Queensland to Shark Bay, Western Australia, around Tasmania, also at Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island in the Tasman Sea.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Kyphosus sydneyanus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/523

Silver Trevally
pseudocaranx dentex

Upper body is bluish-silver, with yellowish silver sides and a silver belly.  Commonly found at thirty-five to sixty centimetres in length and have a life span of over twenty-five years.  Adults inhabit inshore reefs, in large bays and inlets.  Juveniles usually inhabit estrauries, bays and shallow continental shelf waters.

Distribution from approximately Rockhampton, Queensland, along the southern coast of Australia to Exmouth, Western Australia

Source:
http://www.afma.gov.au/portfolio-item/silver-trevally, accessed 24 Oct 2016

Snakeskin Wrasse
eupetrichthys angustipes

A slender, small wrasse with a variable colour pattern - body greyish, maroon, brownish to dark green above, abrupt pale below with five dark broad angled bands on the sides, and irregular dark spots on the head.  Has a peculiar habit of lying on its side on the bottom in a curled position with the head turned upwards, or swimming in an almost vertical vertical position with the tail near the bottom.  Grows to twenty centimetres.

Endemic to temperate waters of southern Australia, from northern New South Wales to the Houtman Abrolhos, Western Australia, including northern Tasmania.  It is rare in the Bass Strait region.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Eupetrichthys angustipes in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/2287

Southern Sea Carp
aplodactylus arctidens

Also known as Marblefish, Stinky Groper, Kelpies, Keke. Variable in colour from grey to greenish-brown with variable whitish blotches and reticulations.  Inhabits shallow, weedy reefs to a depth of twenty metres.  Grazes on algae and considered a very poor food fish.

Found in southern Australia and New Zealand.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Aplodactylus arctidens in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/1187

Star and Stripes Leatherjacket
meuschenia venusta

Males and females differ in colour pattern.  Males are whitish to pale brown, with four to five spotted brown stripes along sides, narrow brown stripes on head, brown spots on top of the snout and below the eye, and a yellowish to whitish caudal fin with upper and lower edges blackish with white spots.  Females are generally overall more brownish.

Endemic to southern Australia from Port Stephens, New South Wales to Shark Bay, Western Australia, excluding Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Meuschenia venusta in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/1284

Swallowtail
centroberyx lineathus

Medium-sized silvery- red Redfish with reddish scale edges forming narrow horizontal lines along the sides, a red eye, red fins and pale upper and lower margins on the caudla fin.  Forms schools near rocky outcrops, pinnacles and reefs.

Recorded in Australian from east-north-east of Merimbula, New South Wales, to off Lancelin, Western Australia.

Source:
Martin F. Gomon & Dianne J. Bray, Centroberyx lineatus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/3744

Tommy Ruff (Australian Herring)
arripia georgiana

A popular recreational angling fish with a greenish to olive-green body, a silvery-white lower surface, bars of golden spots along the sides (especially juveniles and young fish), prominent black tips on the caudal fin, large eyes (about one-fifth head length) and rough scales.  Flesh is soft and somewhat oily, and considered good quality.

Endemic to the southern half of Australia from about Forster, New South Wales, to the Swan River, Western Australia, and around Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Arripis georgianus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/405

Toothbrush Leatherjacket
acanthaluteres vittiger

Males are blackish-blue to brown with many blue lines, and a pale band from the eye to a large toothbrush-like patch of long bristles on the side. Females are yellowish-brown to brown usually with scattered pale blotches and darker brown spots on the sides.  Grows to 32 centimetres.  Juveniles inhabit shallow sheltered seagrass beds and generally move to roch reefs as they growo

Endemic to temperate waters of southern Australia, from about Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, to north of Leeman, Western Australia, including Tasmania.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Acanthaluteres vittiger in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/788

Victorian Scalyfin
parma victoriae

Adults are dark greyish to black, or rusty-coloured, with a dusky head, pale spots along lateral line and are sometimes pale below.  Small juveniles are bright orange with neon-blue lines, spots and a black ocellus ringed with neon-blue on the dorsal fin.  Grows to 25 centimetres.  Inhabits sheltered adn moderately exposed rocky reefs and rocky estuaries.

Endemic to southern Australia, and widely distributed from about Wilsons Promontory, Victoria, to Jurien Bay, Western Australia.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Parma victoriae in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/369

Western Blue Grope
achoerodus gouldii

Males are greyish to bright blue and adult females are typically greyish-green to reddish in colour.  May change from female to male during their lifestyle.  Juveniles are greenish with scattered pale spots.  Inhabits exposed rocky reefs in coastal waters of southern and south-western Australia.  The largest bony fish found along Australia's southern coast.

Native to southern Australia, from west of Melbourne, Victoria, to Houtman Abrolhos, Western Australia.

Source:
Dianne J. Bray, Achoerodus gouldii in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/206

Western Sea Carp
aplodactylus westralis

Brown to slate grey, with six dark saddles on the upper sides becoming irregular bars below, with pale brown or whitish spaces between saddles and bars, and pale brown or whitish spots mostly on the head and unpaired fins.  Common in weedy reef areas to 20 metres.

Known from about Yorke Peninsula, South Australia, to Rottnest Island and just north of Perth, Western Australia.

Source: Dianne J. Bray, Aplodactylus westralis in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/1188

White Pointer Shark
carcharodon carcharias

The legendary great white shark is far more fearsome in our imaginations than in reality.  Largest predatory fish on Earth.  Grows to an average of 4.6 metres in length.  Highly adapted predators, their mouths are lined with up to 300 serrated, triangular teeth arranged in several rows.  Main prey include sea lions, seals, small toothed whales and, even sea turtles, and carrion.

Found in cool, coastal waters throughout the world, there is no reliable data on the great white's population.

Source:
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com.au/animals/fish/great-white-shark/, accessed 24 Oct 2016

Yellow Striped Leatherjacket
meuschenia flavolineata

Blackish to greenish brown leatherjacket, with a large yellow or orange blotch on the tail base, often continued as a yellow stripe along the midsides.  Males have a patch of fine bristles and two pairs of large spines on the tail base.  Females and juveniles lack the bristles and the spines are small to minute.  Grows to thirty centimetres.  Commonly seen in pairs on offshore reefs.

Endemic to temperate waters of southern Australia, from Broughton Island, New South Wales, to Dongarra, Western Australia.

Source:
Barry Hutchiins & Dianne J. Bray, Meuschenia flavolineata in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/1283

Zebra Fish
girella zebra

Pale silvery-grey girellid with nine to ten wide bars that decrease in width towards the lower sides, fins pale yellow.  Juveniles are darker with less distinct bands.  Form small schools in bays, estuaries and on coastal reefs.

Endemic to the southern half of Australia, from Clarence River, New South Wales, to Port Denison, Western Australia, and north-eastern Tasmania.

Source:
Martin F. Gomon & Dianne J. Bray, Girella zebra in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Oct 2016
http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/470