Striped goatfish
(Upeneus vittatus)

Indo-Pacific: Persian Gulf; Red Sea south to East London, South Africa and east to Micronesia and the Hawaiian, Marquesan, and Society islands, north to southern Japan, south to New Caledonia.

Max length: 20 cm TL

Dorsal spines (total): 8; Dorsal soft rays (total): 9; Anal spines: 1; Anal soft rays: 7; lateral line scales 36-38.

7-9 total bars on caudal fin, 4-5 brown or dark brown bars on upper caudal-fin lobe, 3 (rarely 4) bars on lower lobe, increasing distally in width with the widest distal-most bar black or dark brown, while the other bars are pale brown or brown; width of largest lower caudal-fin lobe bar and/or pale interspace between distal-most bars equal to or larger than orbit; tip of lower fin lobe pale (bars on both caudal-fin lobes retained on preserved fish); tip of first dorsal-fin dark, the vertical length of the pigmented area similar in size to width of widest lower caudal-fin lobe bar; 2 yellow or pale brown mid-lateral body stripes, one from eye to caudal-fin base, where it joins the proximal upper caudal-fin lobe bar, and the other stripe below from pectoral-fin base to caudal peduncle and continued by proximal-most lower caudal fin lobe bar; 2 dorsolateral brown or pale brown stripes, with the lower one distinct and well-separated from pale body surface, extending from operculum to behind second dorsal fin, the upper one indistinct or hidden and much shorter, beginning below first dorsal-fin origin and bordered dorsally by a horizontal series of pale spots (lateral body stripes not retained on preserved fish); barbels white; white to silvery body. Dark reddish-brown dorsally, white belly, faint yellowish patches along pelvic and anal-fin bases (body pale brown in preserved fish, slightly darker above lateral line).