Damien’s Tasselsnout Flathead was a nice and unusual catch today

It was a Tasselsnout Flathead which Damien landed off Kurnell. We have seen a few over the years in our waters off Cronulla but they are not common here. This one was about 38 cm in length, pretty much as big as they grow, but we like to preserve them and sent it back to sea. They have a very large well developed head which makes up about 40% of the length of the fish. The large mouth has bands of sharp teeth on the jaws and the roof of the mouth. The body is covered with small scales and the coloration is very variable from pale brown to purple with darker saddles and markings. Nice catch Damien!