Tiger Perch

• The juveniles practise lepidophagy: they approach other fish from behind and tear off scales to eat.
• It emits grunts audible out of the water by contracting muscles against its swim bladder, which is why it is called a grunter.
• Its curved rather than straight bands tell it apart at a glance from other striped fish of the same area.
• The three dark curved bands on its back, shaped like crescent moons, give it its English name, crescent grunter.
• Like the rest of the grunters, it makes audible sounds with its swim bladder when taken out of the water.

Skeleton type

Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bony fish)

Habitat and environment

Shallow coastal waters, estuaries and river mouths of the Indo-Pacific

Sexual maturity

Length at first maturity 13 cm (range 9-17 cm)

Gestation / incubation

Breeding always takes place at sea, even though juveniles and adults turn up in fresh water; after spawning the juveniles migrate upstream towards estuaries and fresh water, which serve them as a nursery

Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terapon_jarbua; FishBase, Terapon jarbua (Ref. 7300, 9710); FishBase; recopilacion sobre Terapon jarbua; Ficha de especie de Terapon jarbua (Vari); Fichas de acuario publico sobre Terapon jarbua; FishBase, Terapon jarbua; Recopilacion sobre Terapon jarbua (ritmos circadianos de consumo de oxigeno)

Best time: Over shallow sandy bottoms near river mouths; the juveniles are abundant in the sandy intertidal zone and in tide pools