Atlantic Spadefish ~ New Jersey Scuba Diving

Atlantic Spadefish

Chaetodipterus faber

Size: to 36" and 20 lbs.

Habitat: shallow coastal waters

Notes: Spadefishes are not quite as tropical as the others on this page, and typically range to New England. They may form large schools. Babies are uniformly black without stripes.

Tropical Fishes

Yes, New Jersey even gets some tropicals. These are babies, born on the coral reefs of the Caribbean, and swept north in the Gulf Stream. Unlike in the Caribbean, capturing these fish for your aquarium is perfectly legal, and is actually doing them a favor, since otherwise, they will only survive until the winter cold kills them. Almost any tropical fish can end up here, these are just some examples, although these are by far the most common.

Sargassum Fish
Lionfish

More: Tropical Fishes ...

Atlantic Spadefish

Tropical Fishes

Wards Island