Taxonomy
Belong to the family Lethrinidae within the order Spariformes; commonly called emperors, emperor breams, or pigface breams.
Emperor
A family of ray-finned fishes (emperors) found mainly in tropical Pacific and Indian waters, some species also occur in the eastern Atlantic.
emperorsemperor breamspigface breams
Species Guide
What to know about emperors
A clean field guide focused on habitat, identification, behavior, and conservation context without burying the useful parts.
Lethrinidae are a family of ray-finned fishes in the order Spariformes, commonly called emperors, emperor breams, or pigface breams. They occur in tropical waters of the Pacific and Indian Oceans; Lethrinus atlanticus is also recorded in the eastern Atlantic. These fishes are benthic feeders that consume invertebrates and small fishes. Some species develop molariform teeth used to crush and eat shelled invertebrates such as molluscs and crabs.
Benthic feeders consuming invertebrates and small fishes; some species specialize on shelled invertebrates using molariform teeth to crush prey such as molluscs and crabs.
The strongest linked planning options currently surface around destinations such as South Male Atoll, North Male Atoll, Ari Atoll and countries such as Maldives, Egypt, Philippines for divers building trips around emperors.
Identification
How to identify emperors
The visual markers divers can use underwater, plus the species most likely to cause confusion.
