Fish
Orbicular Batfish
Platax orbicularis
A tall, disc-shaped silver fish that drifts around reefs, wrecks and jetties along the subtropical KZN coast.
Also known as batfish, orbicular spadefish, round batfish
- Typical size
- Commonly 30-50 cm, up to about 60 cm
- Habitat
- Warm reefs, wrecks and pier structures
- Depth
- Shallows to about 30 m
The orbicular batfish has an almost circular, laterally compressed body with high dorsal and anal fins, giving juveniles a leaf-like outline that becomes rounder and more silvery with age. Colour is generally silver-grey with two dark bars through the eye and behind the head, sometimes with a yellowish tint on the fins.
Adults gather in loose groups over coral and rocky reefs, around wrecks, pier pilings and floating structures, mostly in warm northern KwaZulu-Natal waters. Curious and slow-moving, they often approach divers, and juveniles shelter in estuaries and sheltered bays. They feed on algae, small invertebrates and zooplankton.