You can sponsor this page

Naso lituratus (Forster, 1801)

Orangespine unicornfish
Add your observation in Fish Watcher
Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
This map was computer-generated and has not yet been reviewed.
Naso lituratus   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
Upload your photos and videos
Pictures | Videos | Stamps, coins, misc. | Google image
Image of Naso lituratus (Orangespine unicornfish)
Naso lituratus
Picture by JJPhoto

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Acanthuriformes (Surgeonfishes) > Acanthuridae (Surgeonfishes, tangs, unicornfishes) > Nasinae
Etymology: Naso: Latin, nasus = nose (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Forster.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; reef-associated; depth range 0 - 90 m (Ref. 9710), usually 5 - 30 m (Ref. 37792). Tropical; 35°N - 30°S, 105°E - 130°W

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

East Indian Ocean from Christmas Pacific Ocean: Honshu, Japan south to the Great Barrier Reef and New Caledonia and east to the Hawaiian Islands, French Polynesia, and Pitcairn. Eastern Pacific: Clipperton Island. Once regarded a wide-ranging Indo-Pacific species, the Indian Ocean population is now recognized as a separate species, Naso elegans.

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 46.0 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 37792); max. published weight: 2.3 kg (Ref. 125599)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 6; Dorsal soft rays (total): 26 - 29; Anal spines: 2; Anal soft rays: 27 - 30. This species is distinguished by the following characters: D VI (rarely V or VII),26-29(modally 27); A II,27-30 (rarely 27 or 30); pectoral rays usually 17; body depths of adults 2.6-3.0 in SL; head dorsal profile sloping and smoothly convex (forehead no horn nor protuberances); two large peduncular plates, the keels with forward-projecting points in adults; caudal fin emaginate in young and truncate in adults; body brown to bluish gray, ventral half yellowish gray to yellow, the demarcation along middle of side often abrupt and irregular; edge of opercle and preopercle usually with a dark brown band; margin of lower lip broadly white with upper surface of tongue black in adults; gill rakers are blackish basally; blue caudal fin with a broad, brownish yellow, posterior border which narrows toward corners of fin; it is capable of changing overall into light grayish blue, as when at a cleaning station; when in courtship the males quickly display a broad, bluish white zone on the nape and anterior part of the body , followed by narrow bars of the same color that extend onto lower side (Ref. 54980).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Found in areas of coral, rock, or rubble of lagoon and seaward reefs, Ref. 48637. Benthopelagic (Ref. 58302). Adults usually in small groups. Juveniles in shallow rocky reefs, sometimes in small aggregations mixed with other acanthurids of similar size (Ref. 48637). Feed mainly on leafy brown algae (Sargassum and Dictyota). Sometimes in large aggregations (Ref. 37792). Very seldom poisonous (Ref. 4795). Pair-spawning has been observed.

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturities | Reproduction | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larvae

Probably spawn in pairs (Ref. 240).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : Randall, John E. | Collaborators

Randall, J.E., G.R. Allen and R.C. Steene, 1990. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, Hawaii. 506 p. (Ref. 2334)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 06 May 2010

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Venomous (Ref. 4716)





Human uses

Fisheries: minor commercial; aquarium: commercial
FAO - Publication: search | FishSource | Sea Around Us

More information

Trophic ecology
Food items
Diet compositions
Food consumptions
Food rations
Predators
Ecology
Ecology
Life cycle
Reproduction
Maturities
Fecundities
Spawnings
Spawning aggregations
Egg(s)
Egg developments
Larvae
Larval dynamics
Anatomy
Gill areas
Brains
Otoliths
Physiology
Body compositions
Nutrients
Oxygen consumptions
Swimming type
Swimming speeds
Visual pigment(s)
Fish sounds
Diseases / Parasites
Toxicities (LC50s)
Genetics
Genetics
Electrophoreses
Heritabilities
Human related
Aquaculture systems
Aquaculture profiles
Strains
Ciguatera cases
Stamps, coins, misc.
Outreach
Collaborators
References
References

Tools

Special reports

Download XML

Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Alien/Invasive Species database | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | BOLDSystems | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GenBank: genome, nucleotide | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | MitoFish | National databases | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | Public aquariums | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 123201): 24.5 - 28.9, mean 27.7 °C (based on 734 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.5000   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.02512 (0.01372 - 0.04599), b=2.97 (2.80 - 3.14), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species & (Sub)family-body (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  2.3   ±0.19 se; based on food items.
Generation time: 3.1 ( na - na) years. Estimated as median ln(3)/K based on 1 growth studies.
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.3).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Low to moderate vulnerability (34 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Medium.
Nutrients (Ref. 124155):  Calcium = 39.2 [20.9, 64.0] mg/100g; Iron = 0.548 [0.291, 0.982] mg/100g; Protein = 18.3 [17.0, 19.5] %; Omega3 = 0.107 [0.068, 0.183] g/100g; Selenium = 42.6 [22.1, 79.5] μg/100g; VitaminA = 35.3 [8.6, 134.5] μg/100g; Zinc = 1.18 [0.78, 1.74] mg/100g (wet weight);