Small toothed jobfish (Aphareus furca)

Classification (WoRMS)

Full classification as recorded by WoRMS: Kingdom: Animalia · Phylum: Chordata · Class: Teleostei · Order: Eupercaria incertae sedis · Family: Lutjanidae · Genus: Aphareus.

Accepted name: Aphareus furca · Authority: (Lacepède, 1801) · Taxonomic status: accepted · AphiaID: 218470.

Synonyms and superseded combinations recorded for this taxon: Aphareus caerulescens Cuvier, 1830; Aphareus flavivultus Jenkins, 1901; Aphareus furcatus (Lacepède, 1801); Caranxomorus sacrestinus Lacepède, 1803; Labrus furca Lacepède, 1801.

Source: World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=218470 (CC BY 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Biology and life history (FishBase)

Measured values published by FishBase for Aphareus furca. Only fields the database actually holds for this species are shown; these are database values, not aquarium guidance.

Maximum length: 70 cm · Common length: 25 cm · Depth range: 0–122 m · Habitat zone: reef-associated · Body shape: fusiform / normal · Vulnerability index: 48 of 100 · Fishery importance: commercial · Aquarium trade: never/rarely.

FishBase notes: Adults inhabit inshore coral and rocky reefs and in clear waters of lagoons (Ref. 9821). Pelagic and benthopelagic (Ref. 58302). Occur singly or in small groups. Feed mainly on fishes, but also eat crustaceans.

Individuals with brilliant yellow on head may be nuptial males (Ref. 9821). Often curious and approachable (Ref. 9710). Marketed fresh. Minimum depth reported taken from Ref. 128797.

Source: FishBase species summary (SpecCode 81) — https://www.fishbase.se/summary/Aphareus-furca.html (CC BY-NC 3.0 — non-commercial use only). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Distribution and occurrence records (GBIF)

9,317 georeferenced occurrence records for Aphareus furca are published through GBIF from 48 countries or marine areas. The map above plots 215 distinct locations from a sample of 3,000 records, omitting 16 inland records that carry an institution's coordinates rather than a collection site; it shows where the species has been observed and reported, not a modelled range.

Most records by country or area: United States Minor Outlying Islands (2,200); American Samoa (2,056); Northern Mariana Islands (1,155); United States of America (1,037); French Polynesia (382).

The full country table, WoRMS marine regions and the sampling notes are on this species' Distribution page.

Source: GBIF Occurrence Search (taxonKey 5209911) — https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search?taxon_key=5209911&has_coordinate=true (records CC0 / CC BY); WoRMS distribution records (MarineRegions) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=218470 (CC BY 4.0); Natural Earth 110m basemap — https://www.naturalearthdata.com/ (public domain). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Conservation status (IUCN Red List)

The IUCN Red List assesses Aphareus furca (Lacepède, 1801) as Least Concern (code LC). No trend, population estimate or threat analysis is given here, because none is available from this source without the Red List API; follow the source link for the full assessment, including its date.

Source: IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (taxon 194289) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/194289/0; GBIF IUCN Red List category endpoint (taxonKey 5209911) — https://api.gbif.org/v1/species/5209911/iucnRedListCategory. Accessed 2026-09-25.

Description and natural history (Wikipedia)

Aphareus furca was first formally described in 1801 as Labrus furca with the type locality given as Mauritius. Under the synonym Aphareus caerulescens David Starr Jordan, John Otterbein Snyder and Shigeho Tanaka designated this species as the type species of the genus Aphareus in 1913, Georges Cuvier had created this genus in 1830 with A. caerulescens as its only member. The specific name furca means "fork", a reference to the deeply forked caudal fin.

Description

Aphareus furca belongs to the tropical snapper and sea perches family, Lutjanidae. It can be reality identified by their adult coloration. This fish contains long filaments at the tips of its tail fin. Its body is of a bronze/blue-gray color and it has yellow fins.

It reaches a maximum length of 70 cm but more commonly found to be a length of 25 cm. Males may be identified by yellow present on the head. The dorsal fin contains 10 spines and 10 or 11 soft rays, normally 11, while the anal fin has 3 spines and 8 soft rays and the pectoral fins have 15-16 rays.

Distribution

Aphareus furca is found in the Indo-pacific from the south of Hawaii to the Pitcairn Islands, West and East Africa. It has also been found from the Gulf of Mannar to the southern part of Japan going southward to Australia. It has been collected at depths of 1–122 m but also has been reported at depths of 302m. In the late 1990s, this species of fish was found at 38.6% of the sampling sites and accounted for 2.5% of the recorded biomass.

From the years of 2008 to 2014 estimates of its density were at 2.5 to 41.2 individuals per hectare in Pacific coral reef areas. It has also been discovered that its population size is affected by fishing and in areas where that fishing pressure was relieved, population size increased. The highest population sizes were recorded in the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands where those sizes were recorded to be 19.4 and 63 per hectare.

Small measurements of population size ranging from 0.3 to 17.2 were found in the Federated States of Micronesia, Solomon Islands, the remote islands around the Solomon Islands, Fiji, and Raja Ampat.

Habitat

Aphareus furca is a benthopelagic and pelagic species that is mostly found to inhabit inshore coral and rocky reed areas, rocky bottoms, and clear water lagoons. This species is a piscivorous and can be found singly or in small groups. It is typically found at depths of 1–120 m, but it has been reported to be found at depths of 300 m.

Threats

Aphareus furca is vulnerable to many detrimental effects that can decrease its population. Capture of Aphareus furca by spearfishing and handlines or vertical longlines makes it a commonly sought after gamefish. This fishing has been found to be a main factor leading to its reduction in population size, especially in Fiji and the Philippines where this species is found close to the coast. Hunting and fishing is posing as such a threat for population size that in South Africa bag limits have been implemented to how many can be caught.

Source: Wikipedia: Aphareus furca — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aphareus_furca (CC BY-SA 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-25.