How to Identify Yellow Goatfish

Video Transcript

The fish that we are going to identify now is the Yellow Goatfish. If you have ever snorkeled or scuba-dived in the area of coral reefs with large sand patches, you've probably seen the Yellow Goatfish, since it's fairly common throughout the tropical waters of the U.S. and the Caribbean. Yellow Goatfish are bottom feeders and can often be seen in sandy areas around coral heads foraging for food by digging through the sand with two long barbells, they are like whiskers, which are located under the mouth of the fish. They often travel in schools and forage through the sand together. You will also likely see Wrasses, Barjacks, Porgies or other fishes following the foraging goatfish closely. This is because they are waiting for a Yellow Goatfish to scare up a small fish or crab that these comensual feeders will grab for a quick meal. When not feeding in the sand, schools of Yellow Goatfish can often be seen hanging out over a coral head and if there is any current they will be on the lee side of the coral. Yellow Goatfish have a white body with a yellow stripe running the length of their body about halfway between the back and the belly. They also have yellow tails. Yellow Goatfish commonly reach a length of six to twelve inches. Yellow Goatfish aren't shy and can usually be easily and closely approached by divers and snorkelers. That's the Yellow Goatfish.

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