Orange Filefish, Aluterus schoepfii
Orange Filefish, Aluterus schoepfii. Fish caught off the Dunedin Causeway, Dunedin, Florida, March 2016. Length: 36 cm (14 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Ryan Crutchfield, Tampa, Florida.
The Orange Filefish, Aluterus schoepfii, is a member of the Filefish or Monacanthidae Family, that is known in Mexico as lija naranja. Globally, there are four species in the genus Aluterus, and all four are found in Mexican waters, two in the Atlantic and two in both the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans.
The Orange Filefish as a deep compressed elongated oval body. They vary in color and patterns from an olive-gray to a rich orange to soft white dorsally transitioning to a bluish-white ventrally. They have numerous small round orange or yellow-orange spots and/or blotch patterns covering their head and body. Their mouth has blackish lips. Their caudal fin is yellow or dusky with a white margin. They have the ability to change color to match their surroundings. Upon death, their coloring transitions into a bland and uniform yellow-orange. Their head has a slightly concave profile with a pointed snout, and a small terminal mouth that has a projecting lower jaw and is equipped with incisors on both jaws, and small beady eyes located low on the head. Their anal fin has 35 to 41 rays and are short; their caudal fin is elongated with a narrow base; their first dorsal fin has 2 spines and is short with an elongated first dorsal spine that is found on the crown of the head that is thin and short; their second dorsal fin has 32 to 39 rays and is posterior of the middle of the body and is rounded and mirrors the anal fin; and, their pectoral fins are small and rounded. When threatened, the Orange Filefish will dive quickly into a crevice in the reef, wedge themselves into the shelter by erecting and locking their first dorsal spine and another spine located on their belly. This behavior is also used when they rest on the reef at night. They lack pelvic fins. Their body is covered with small scales and small hairs creating a coarse sandpaper-like texture.
The Orange Filefish are are found as solitary individuals, in pairs or in schools at depths up to 900 m (2,950 feet), over mud, sand or seagrass substrate. They are omnivorous and feed on algae and seagrasses. They rely on camouflage and spinage for protection but they are preyed upon by larger fish including Dorado, Coryphaena hippurus, the Inshore Lizardfish, Synodus foetens, and various Tuna as-well-as numerous sea birds. They reach a maximum of 61 cm (2 feet 0 inches) in length. They breed in groups consisting of 1 male and 2 to 5 females. The females lay demersal eggs in safe areas, such as depressions in the sand, and the eggs are then fertilized by the males. Both the males and the females will guard these fertilized eggs from predators. The juveniles are pelagic and found within floating Sargassum for protection again predation. The Orange Filefish is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.
The Orange Filefish is a resident of all Mexican waters of the Atlantic Ocean including the Gulf of Mexico and the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in the Caribbean.
The Orange Filefish is easily confused with the Dotterel Filefish, Aluterus heudelotii (blue lines and spots), the Scrawled Filefish, Aluterus scriptus (blue lines and spots), and the Unicorn Filefish, Aluterus monoceros (lacks spotting).
From a conservation perspective the Orange Filefish is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. They are considered to be a trash fish by most and are reported to contain ciguatoxin making them a poor food choice. They are utilized by the aquarium trade and a modest level and often seen in large public aquariums.