Common Name: Blue-scribbled Damsel

Distribution: Uncommon in the Solitary Islands Marine Park. Distributed throughout the Indo-West Pacific region: from the Maldives and Sri Lanka to Vanuatu, north to southern Japan and south to New Caledonia. In Australia recorded from the Exmouth region of Western Australia and the Great Barrier Reef south to northern New South Wales. 

Ecological Notes: Frequent lagoons and seaward reefs, especially sandy areas around soft corals and gorgonians. Depth 3 – 35 m. 

Additional Notes: Pale blue with white tail base, black spot on pectoral fin base, blue “ear” spot and dark tips on dorsal fin spines. Ocellus at rear base of dorsal fin and (usually) pale caudal fin helps to distinguish this species from similar Pomacentrus australis. Oviparous, (embroyo develops in the egg after egg laying as in birds). Feed primarily on zooplankton. Males guard the eggs which are attached to the substrate. Grows to 11 cm. 

References: R. Stuart-Smith, G. Edgar, A. Green, I. Shaw, Tropical Marine Fishes of Australia. Reed New Holland Publishers, 2015. p.277.

Atlas of Living Australia website at https://bie.ala.org.au/search?q=pomacentrus+nagasakiensis. Accessed 02/07/18.

FishBase. Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2018. World Wide Web electronic publication. https://fishbase.ca/summary/Pomacentrus-nagasakiensis.html. Accessed 02/07/18.