The marblefish is also known as the southern seacarp, and is found around New Zealand coasts as well as some areas of south eastern Australia. They are sometimes mistaken for the hiwihiwi, being much the same in size, shape and colour.
The marblefish gets it's name from the colour varieng between black and mottled with grey resembling marble or granite as well as being a dark greenish brown to dark olive brown. Lighter on the sides fading to whiter below.
They are often found living in and around rocky areas, amongst kelp and other weedy areas. They are normally in the intertidal zone in depths from close to the surface down to about 40 mts or 130 ft, I have seen them mostly from the surface down to 15mts or 50ft.
The marblefish is a heavy bodied elongate fish with a blunt rounded snout and small eyes, a long deeply notched dorsal fin, and thick fleshy pectoral, pelvic, and anal fins that are used as props when the fish is resting on the bottom. The body is covered with small scales, and the head sporting only two patches of small scales on each side.
They have a small downward facing mouth at the tip of the snout bearing 5 or 6 rows of three tiny teeth. I think this shaped mouth helps them eat their main food, being seaweed and other smaller marine groweths, as well as some small worms and marine animals. When these fish are not feeding they can be seen resting amoungst seaweed in small caves and crevices.
They grow to about 50cms or a little more than a foot long, and weigh a little over a 1Kg or up to 3lbs.