Caesio xanthonota
Encounter Rate
Spotting Difficulty
Best Season
Year-round
Depth Range
1-50 meters
The yellowback fusilier is one of the key schooling species that creates the spectacular walls of colour for which Komodo's dive sites are famous. Distinguished from its close relative the yellowtail fusilier by its broad yellow dorsal band that extends along the upper back, this streamlined planktivore forms massive aggregations at current-swept reef sites throughout the park. Schools of yellowback fusiliers numbering in the thousands create a mesmerising visual spectacle as they stream through the water column, their blue flanks and yellow backs flashing in the sunlight. In Komodo, they are an essential component of the reef food web, converting zooplankton into fish biomass that supports the park's impressive populations of sharks, trevallies, and other apex predators. Together with yellowtail fusiliers, they are the most abundant mid-water schooling fish in the park, and their massive aggregations at sites like Castle Rock and Crystal Rock are the backdrop against which the drama of the predator-prey relationship plays out daily. Their coordinated schooling behaviour — thousands of fish moving as a single, fluid organism — is one of nature's most impressive demonstrations of collective intelligence.
Average Size
20-28cm
Size Range
10-35cm
Maximum Size
35cm
Planktivore feeding on zooplankton, particularly copepods, crustacean larvae, and small fish larvae carried in the current.
The yellowback fusilier is one of the key schooling species that creates the spectacular walls of colour for which Komodo's dive sites are famous. Distinguished from its close relative the yellowtail fusilier by its broad yellow dorsal band that extends along the upper back, this streamlined planktivore forms massive aggregations at current-swept reef sites throughout the park. Schools of yellowback fusiliers numbering in the thousands create a mesmerising visual spectacle as they stream through the water column, their blue flanks and yellow backs flashing in the sunlight. In Komodo, they are an essential component of the reef food web, converting zooplankton into fish biomass that supports the park's impressive populations of sharks, trevallies, and other apex predators. Together with yellowtail fusiliers, they are the most abundant mid-water schooling fish in the park, and their massive aggregations at sites like Castle Rock and Crystal Rock are the backdrop against which the drama of the predator-prey relationship plays out daily. Their coordinated schooling behaviour — thousands of fish moving as a single, fluid organism — is one of nature's most impressive demonstrations of collective intelligence.
This species plays an important role in the marine ecosystem of Komodo National Park. Responsible diving practices help protect these animals and their habitat for future generations.
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Yellowback fusiliers have a broad yellow band along their upper back/dorsal area, while yellowtail fusiliers have yellow tails. Both species often school together and play similar ecological roles as planktivores and prey for larger predators.
