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unicorn fish
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short-horned unicorn fish
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short-horned unicorn fish
short-horned unicorn fish Whitemargin unicornfish (Naso annulatus).

unicorn fish

fish, genus Naso
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Also known as: Naso, unicornfish
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Also spelled:
unicornfish
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surgeonfish
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unicorn fish, any of certain exclusively marine fishes belonging to the genus Naso, in the family Acanthuridae (order Perciformes), occurring in the tropical Indo-Pacific region. The 17 species are herbivorous algae eaters. Unicorn fishes have a pair of sharp forward-pointing spines that protrude from the side of the tail shaft, and the fishes also have a long spike, a frontal horn, protruding from the forehead.

The elongate Eumecichthys fiski, in the crestfish family Lophotidae (order Lampridiformes), is also called unicorn fish.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.