WhenToDive
Fish · 🐠

Mandarinfish

Synchiropus splendidus

Mandarinfish are tiny, brilliantly-coloured dragonets that spend the day hidden in rubble and emerge at dusk for a short, ritualised mating display — pairs rising a foot off the bottom together and releasing gametes. The dive is a sit-and-wait in the last ten minutes of light, hovering over the correct rubble patch. Lembeh, Mabul, Palau, and Dauin in the Philippines all have well-known mandarin dive sites. Red filters and restrained strobe work preserve the behaviour for subsequent divers.

Mandarinfish are tiny, brilliantly-coloured dragonets that spend the day hidden in rubble and emerge at dusk for a short, ritualised mating display — pairs rising a foot off the bottom together and releasing gametes. The dive is a sit-and-wait in the last ten minutes of light, hovering over the correct rubble patch. Lembeh, Mabul, Palau, and Dauin in the Philippines all have well-known mandarin dive sites. Red filters and restrained strobe work preserve the behaviour for subsequent divers.

The year at a glance

Global aggregated reliability — at any given month, how reliably can you find this species somewhere in the world?

Global reliability · as of June 2026 Rare Moderate Reliable

Where to see them in June

Sorted by June reliability and species status.

  1. 01

    Lembeh Strait

    Indonesia · southeast asia · peak
    5/5
  2. 02

    Palau

    Palau · pacific · peak
    3/5

Full season breakdown

Peak Present Rare

Destination
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Notes
Lembeh Strait
Dusk dives at designated sites
Palau
Dusk dives at designated sites