False trevally

Lactarius lactarius

Fish
IUCN: Not evaluated

Usual depth8–41 m
Water temperature11–30 °C
Best monthsMay, September, and October
How commonOccasional

About this species

The false trevally is a species of carangiform ray-finned fish in the family Lactariidae, currently the sole member of the family.

Text from the Wikipedia article “False trevally”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

Loading the map

Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 9 records
February: 16 records
March: 3 records
April: 4 records
May: 24 records
June: 5 records
July: 3 records
August: 14 records
September: 20 records
October: 26 records
November: 12 records
December: 9 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 8–41 m · Deepest record: 82 m

0–10 m: 36 records
10–20 m: 27 records
20–30 m: 23 records
30–40 m: 8 records
40–50 m: 14 records
50–60 m: 1 records
60–70 m: 0 records
70–80 m: 1 records
80–90 m: 1 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 11–30 °C

10–12 °C: 12 records
12–14 °C: 18 records
14–16 °C: 0 records
16–18 °C: 0 records
18–20 °C: 0 records
20–22 °C: 0 records
22–24 °C: 0 records
24–26 °C: 13 records
26–28 °C: 70 records
28–30 °C: 60 records

Names and classification

English: False trevally, false trevally, milkfish, Milk Trevally, whitefish

Names in 6 more languages

German: Kuhbarsch
Spanish: Lactarius lactarius
Japanese: アクタウオ
Korean: 회유전갱이
Thai: ปลาใบขนุน
Simplified Chinese: 乳香魚, 乳鯖, 擬鰺

Other scientific names: Lactarius burmanicus, Lactarius delicatulus, Lactarius lacta, Scomber lactarius

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).
335 open-data records from 1909 to 2018.
Species data updated October 27, 2026.

Log what you see on your next dive

The free DiveHive diver app keeps your logbook with every sighting and shows what lives at the site you dive next.

Join the waitlist