Johnston's Weedfish
Heteroclinus johnstoni
- Usual depth5–10 m
- Water temperature14–18 °C
- Best monthsMarch
- How commonRare
Photo credit: (c) Christopher Mark, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
About this species
Heteroclinus johnstoni, or Johnston's weedfish, is a species of clinid native to the waters along the around southern Australian coast where it prefers reefs with tall seaweed growth at depths down to about 50 metres (160 ft). This species can reach a maximum length of 40 centimetres (16 in) TL. The specific name honours the statistician and scientist Robert Mackenzie Johnston (1843-1918).
Text from the Wikipedia article “Heteroclinus johnstoni”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
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Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 18 records
- February: 22 records
- March: 47 records
- April: 19 records
- May: 24 records
- June: 26 records
- July: 20 records
- August: 5 records
- September: 11 records
- October: 19 records
- November: 14 records
- December: 21 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 5–10 m · Deepest record: 20 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 14–18 °C
Photos
(c) Tim, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA · iNaturalist
Names and classification
- English
- Johnston's Weedfish, Johnstons Weedfish
Names in 1 more languages
- German
- Foster's Seegrasfisch
Other scientific names: Clinus johnstoni
Similar species
Common WeedfishHeteroclinus perspicillatus
Common WeedfishHeteroclinus heptaeolus
Kuiters WeedfishHeteroclinus kuiteri
Rosy weedfishHeteroclinus roseus
Forster's WeedfishHeteroclinus tristis
Whitelegg's WeedfishHeteroclinus whiteleggii
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.
- Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
- Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
- 293 open-data records from 1886 to 2023.
- Species data updated November 3, 2026.
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