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Dog-toothed Cardinalfish

Cheilodipterus isostigma

  • Fish
  • IUCN: Least concern
  • Usual depth1–15 m
  • Water temperature24–30 °C
  • Best monthsMay, October, and November
  • How commonRare
All species

Photo credit: (c) Storm Martin, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

  • January: 17 records
  • February: 12 records
  • March: 16 records
  • April: 13 records
  • May: 32 records
  • June: 11 records
  • July: 23 records
  • August: 24 records
  • September: 22 records
  • October: 39 records
  • November: 38 records
  • December: 30 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 1–15 m · Deepest record: 32.5 m

  • 0–10 m: 155 records
  • 10–20 m: 20 records
  • 20–30 m: 9 records
  • 30–40 m: 2 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 24–30 °C

  • 24–26 °C: 22 records
  • 26–28 °C: 48 records
  • 28–30 °C: 129 records

Names and classification

English
Dog-toothed Cardinalfish, Tailspot Cardinalfish, Toothy Cardinalfish

Other scientific names: Cheilodipterops isostigma, Cheilodipterus isostigmus

Similar species

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

  • Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
  • Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
  • 327 open-data records from 1953 to 2023.
  • Species data updated October 26, 2026.

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