Southern Pygmy Leatherjacket

Fascinating facts about the Southern Pygmy Leatherjacket

• In 1824 French naturalists Jean René Constant Quoy and Joseph Paul Gaimard first put the Southern pygmy leatherjacket on the scientific map, naming it after the Sydney harbour where they collected their samples.
• Despite its name, this tiny fish only reaches about 9 centimetres (3.5 in) long, yet it can puff up its belly like a balloon when threatened.
• Its whole range hugs Australia’s southern coastline, from southern Queensland, across Tasmania, to the far-west of Western Australia, making it a true home-grown coastal specialist.
• The genus label Brachaluteres blends Greek and Latin roots meaning “short” and “yellow,” a nod to the fish’s compact, often pale yellow-brown body.
• During courtship a single leatherjacket can swap its mottled greens and stripes for a whole new palette, showing that colour isn’t fixed but a dynamic love language.

At a glance

About the Southern Pygmy Leatherjacket

The Southern pygmy leatherjacket, Brachaluteres jacksonianus, is a diminutive filefish that inhabits the temperate coastal waters and reefs of Australia, ranging from southern Queensland around to south-west Western Australia and including Tasmania. Its body is almost perfectly circular, never exceeding nine centimetres (3.5 in) in length, and it possesses the ability to inflate its abdomen. The fish’s coloration is highly variable, ranging from pale yellow-brown to dark green, with dark and light stripes, spots or ocelli, and it can change during the courtship process.

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