HomeMarine aquarium fishOther marine fishLongfin batfish Longfin batfish (Platax teira) Scientific name: Platax teira Forssk?l, 1775 The Longfin batfish (Platax teira) is a marine fish of the family Ephippidae. Native range: Indo-West Pacific, Red Sea and East Africa to Papua New Guinea, north to the Ryukyu Islands, south to Australia. BiologyDorsal spines (total): 5 - 6; Dorsal soft rays (total): 28-37; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 22 - 28. Ocular band of adult specimens uniformly dark. Yellowish silvery or dusky, with a black (or dusky) bar through eye and another dark bar from dorsal-fin origin across rear edge of operculum and pectoral-fin base to belly, where it usually encloses a black blotch, with another smaller black vertical streak often present at origin of anal fin. Median fins dusky yellow, with black margins posteriorly. Pelvic fins yellow, dusky yellow or blackish. Body orbicular and strongly compressed, its depth more than twice length of head and 0.9 to 1.2 times SL. Head length 2.7 to 3.5 times in SL. Large adults (above 35 cm standard length) with bony hump from top of head to interorbital region, the front head profile almost vertical. Interorbital width 42 to 50% head length. Jaws with bands of slender, flattened, tricuspid teeth, the middle cusp slighSource: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0. Species factsScientific namePlatax teiraFamilyEphippidae (Spadefishes, batfishes and scats)OrderPerciformes (Perch-like fish)ClassActinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)Maximum length70.0Depth range20 m (66 ft)EnvironmentMarine; reef-associated; amphidromous; depth range ? - 20 mClimateTropicalDistributionIndo-West Pacific: Red Sea and East Africa to Papua New Guinea, north to the Ryukyu Islands, south to Australia.Conservation status (IUCN)Not EvaluatedThreat to humansHarmlessUsesFisheries: minor commercial; gamefish: yes; aquarium: commercialResilienceMedium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (Preliminary K or Fecundity.) More other marine fishDusky batfishPlatax pinnatusMoontail bullseyePriacanthus hamrurSilver sweeperPempheris oualensisBrown chubKyphosus bigibbusSmallmouth squirrelfishSargocentron microstomaStriped monocle breamScolopsis lineataSee all other marine fish SourcesTaxonomy, distribution and biology data: FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly, eds.), licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.Last updated 27 September 2026