Philippine Damsel
Pomacentrus philippinus
- Usual depth4–21 m
- Water temperature24–30 °C
- Best monthsFebruary and April
- How commonOccasional
Photo credit: (c) 呂一起(Lyu yi-chi), some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
About this species
Pomacentrus philippinus, the Philippine damsel, is a damselfish species described by Barton Warren Evermann and Alvin Seale in 1907. Pomacentrus philippinus is part of the genus Pomacentrus and the family Pomacentridae.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Pomacentrus philippinus”, 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: 11 records
- February: 355 records
- March: 47 records
- April: 370 records
- May: 35 records
- June: 137 records
- July: 23 records
- August: 18 records
- September: 38 records
- October: 25 records
- November: 29 records
- December: 17 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 4–21 m · Deepest record: 36.5 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 24–30 °C
Photos
(c) 呂一起(Lyu yi-chi), some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist 
(c) Ditch Townsend, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA · iNaturalist 
(c) Ditch Townsend, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA · iNaturalist 
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist 
(c) desertnaturalist, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
Names and classification
- English
- Philippine Damsel, Philippine Damselfish, Red-top Damsel
Names in 5 more languages
- Spanish
- Damita filipina
- French
- Bouteur philippin, Demoiselle des Philippines
- Japanese
- Firipin-suzumedai, Firipinsuzumedai, フィリピンスズメダイ
- Thai
- ปลาสลิดหินดำหางส้ม
- Simplified Chinese
- 厚殼仔, 菲律賓雀鯛
Similar species
Blue DamselPomacentrus coelestis
Ocellate DamselfishPomacentrus vaiuli
- Lemon damsel
Pomacentrus moluccensis
Amboina DamselfishPomacentrus amboinensis
Charcoal damselPomacentrus brachialis
- Dusky Damsel
Pomacentrus adelus
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).
- 1,756 open-data records from 1908 to 2021.
- Species data updated October 26, 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.