Bluespine Unicornfish / Tataga'
Document Actions
Bluespine Unicornfish / Tataga'
Naso unicornis
The tataga' is one of a group of unicornfishes that develops a prominent horn on the forehead. Most unicornfishes have two pairs of sharp bladelike spines at the base of the tail. These are used for defense and can easily cut the hand of a careless fisherman. The blue color around the base of the spines is a warning signal to would-be predators that this fish may be dangerous to capture and eat. Tataga' are popular foodfish.
Tataga' are the most common unicornfish of shallow reef slopes where they may occur in groups. They are most abundant in surgy outer reef areas, but also occur along lagoon and channel slopes to a depth of about 100 feet (30 m). They feed on attached and floating seaweed and are particularly fond of leafy brown Sargassum seaweed, called chaiguan in Chamoru. A skilled fisherman can hook them in channels by using chaiguan as bait. Tataga' are also caught by spearfishing and by cast net along the reef margin. Tataga' may reach a length of 22 inches (46 cm), excluding the tail filaments.
Young tataga', called guassa' in Chamoru, do not have a horn and settle from the reef as nearly transparent larvae after having lived in the surface waters of the open sea for up to two months. Unicornfish larvae get unusually large, up to two inches (5 cm), before they settle on the reef. That is why it is impossible to find smaller young on the reef. Large tataga' larvae have distinctive dark spots on the back and are a common prey of måhimåhi, wahoo, tunas, and young billfishes.
Three other horned unicornfishes occur at Guam, none of which have blue spines. The whitemargin unicornfish (N. annulatus) has a white margin around the tail and when small, has a white ring around the tail base; the spotted unicornfish (N. brevirostris) has dark spots and vertically-elongated streaks on the body and a white tail; and, the humpnose unicornfish (N. brachycentron) called tataga' halu'u in Chamoru, has a bizarre-looking hump on the back.
Guam Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy, 9/27/2005
