Common Name: Saddled bream

Scientific Names: Oblada melanura

Description: In shoals of similar sized fish from 5 to 15cm. Compared to the White and the Two-banded seabreams, this is a slimmer fish, with a more oval body. The tail stalk marking of a black patch flanked by white on either side, resembles an aircraft roundel.

Distinctive Features: A dark spot on the tail stalk flanked by white on each side.

Abundance: At every site.

Habitat & Behaviour: Shoals are common at all depths in the water column near to reefs and in the shallows too. They feed in the water column on plankton and are busy fish that dart around, constantly on the move. They will often be one of the first species to arrive if bread is in the water!

Reaction to Snorkellers & Divers: They are extremely wary of snorkellers and difficult to film but less so of divers.

Text: Bob Earll
Photo: Russell & Gill Bennett
Video: Russell & Gill Bennett