Sea chubs are members of the Kyphosidae family. They are found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific oceans. Most of them inhabit shallow seas near to shore. Members of the family have moderately deep oval body, short head, blunt terminal mouth and small rough scales. They have a continuous long-based dorsal fin with 9-16 spines and 11-28 soft rays, a concave to forked tail, and pelvic fins arising behind the pectoral-fin base.
Sea chubs consist of both herbivorous, feeding mainly on algae and carnivorous, feeding on benthic invertebrates.
There are 14 genera and about 55 species of Kyphosidae worldwide. Malaysia has only one genus and about 3 species.
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Scientific Name: Kyphosus cinerascens (Forsskål, 1775) English Name: Blue Sea Chub Mandarin Name | 鱼类中文名: 白毛 (Bái máo) Local Malay Name: Beras-beras, Aklat Karang, Beras Biru Thai Name | ชื่อสามัญภาษาไทย: ปลากะพงสลิดลายน้ำเงิน (Plā kaphng s̄lid lāyn̂ả ngein), ปลาสลิดทะเลน้ำเงิน (Plā s̄lid thale n̂ảngein) Main Identification Features: Soft portion of dorsal and anal fin elongated anteriorly, resulting in near vertical rear margin. Head with 2 faint oblique brownish bands below eye. Size: Maximum total length 50 cm; commonly to 40 cm. Habitat and Ecology: Coral and rocky reefs, to 25 m depth. Mainly herbivorous, feeds on seaweed and associated invertebrates. 
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