Leaf fish or Wasp fish

Hi all

What is this fish? I'm pretty sure it's Indian Waspfish, but my friend is saying it's Spiny Leaf Fish. Who's correct, or are we both wrong/correct. Picture taken in 7-8 meters, fish was about 5-7 cm long, and waving like a dead leaf. location Raya Yai, Thailand (close Phuket)

Thanks for all the help.

Heikki

What is this fish? I'm pretty sure it's Indian Waspfish, but my friend is saying it's Spiny Leaf Fish. Who's correct, or are we both wrong/correct.

Not sure about common name but it's an Ablabys macracanthus (which I call a spiny waspfish, go figure...).

Great find for Phuket area, btw.

And what do you think about the white face? I've been checking fishbase.org, but haven't found anything looking 100% like this. Indian Ocean Reef Guide by Helmut Debelius have a good photo of indian wasp fish, that looks like this but without the white face. Second thing bothering me is the fin going forward and not up, like on the pictures i found on the internet. Could this be a juvenile? size is too big to be a juvenile?

that was first one I have ever seen, Had around 30 divers around me doing skills when I spotted this one. Nobody else saw it, except my group of three.

Heikki

And what do you think about the white face? I've been checking fishbase.org, but haven't found anything looking 100% like this. Indian Ocean Reef Guide by Helmut Debelius have a good photo of indian wasp fish, that looks like this but without the white face. Second thing bothering me is the fin going forward and not up, like on the pictures i found on the internet. Could this be a juvenile? size is too big to be a juvenile?

Now that I've done a bit of research, the white face and the location is leading me to think it's perhaps a cockatoo waspfish (Ablabys taenianotus). Brown body/fins with white face is a common colour variation for this species. The fish can flex the dorsal fin so the fins can be "forward" or "going up."

Ablabys macracanthus and Ablabys taenianotus are very very similar looking; Ablabys taenianotus having a higher number of dorsal spines (17 versus 15).

Source: Allen, Steene, Humann and DeLoach. Reef Fish Identification, Tropical Pacific. Jacksonville, 2003. p. 381.

Thanks Vie, now that I've done more research based on your suggestions I also think it's a cockatoo wasp fish.

Looks like a Cockatoo waspfish to me... Oh and welcome aboard fellow countryman!

I agree that it's a cockatoo waspfish, and the facial coloration doesn't alter that; I've seen them with a variety of quite different facial color than body color. Nice find!