Moreton Bay bug
Thenus parindicus
Illustration: Bloom by Day
A flat sandy-brown bug whose eyes sit right out at the OUTER corners of the shield — a Balmain bug's are near the middle, and that is the quickest way to tell them apart. It lies buried on soft bottom with only the eyes and the shield edge showing.
facts
- habitat
- sand
- size
- ~15 cm, to 25 cm
Bluebird, approximate - not from a cited source
- records
- 46 at 9 spot(s), none of
them in this region
Recorded at Cod Hole (Ribbon Reefs GBR), Low Isles (Port Douglas), Port Douglas (Outer GBR), Green Island (Cairns), Fitzroy Island (Cairns), Frankland Islands (Cairns), Dunk Island (Mission Beach), Cairns Reef (Great Barrier), Great Keppel Island (West). A count of occurrence records, not abundance. Records are where someone looked.
when it has been recorded
JFMAMJJASOND
A gap means no record in the sample, not absence.
the rule
QLD — Min: 7.5cm (across widest part of shell) · Limit: 20
source
· verified 2026-10-10
no NSW rule listed — check before you dive
no closed season recorded for this species — that is not the same as open; check the official page
Rules checked 2026-10-13 against qld.gov.au
Rules change. Check before you dive.
Occurrence data: Atlas of Living Australia (ala.org.au), CC-BY 4.0.
Diver transect counts: Reef Life Survey (reeflifesurvey.com), CC-BY 4.0, supplied via ALA.
Target and protected species: Queensland tidal-water size and possession limits (qld.gov.au) and NSW saltwater bag and size limits plus threatened species lists (dpird.nsw.gov.au).
Habitat and size: Bluebird, approximate, from general knowledge. Not cited. FishBase is CC BY-NC and this app is commercial, so it is not used.
Description written for Bloom. RECORDS ARE WHERE SOMEONE LOOKED, NOT WHERE THE FISH ARE. A record count is a count of records near here and nothing else -- it is not abundance, and a species with few records is not rare. Absence of records is not absence of fish.
Diver transect counts: Reef Life Survey (reeflifesurvey.com), CC-BY 4.0, supplied via ALA.
Target and protected species: Queensland tidal-water size and possession limits (qld.gov.au) and NSW saltwater bag and size limits plus threatened species lists (dpird.nsw.gov.au).
Habitat and size: Bluebird, approximate, from general knowledge. Not cited. FishBase is CC BY-NC and this app is commercial, so it is not used.
Description written for Bloom. RECORDS ARE WHERE SOMEONE LOOKED, NOT WHERE THE FISH ARE. A record count is a count of records near here and nothing else -- it is not abundance, and a species with few records is not rare. Absence of records is not absence of fish.