[2] Centropyge multispinis has a body which has a dusky background colour marked with black vertical bars along he flanks.

It is found on the eastern coast of Africa including the Red Sea and across the Indian Ocean to Thailand and Sumatra.

Its presence in Madagascar has to be confirmed and there is a record from Darwin, Northern Territory, which possibly represents a misidentification.

[3] This species is a protogynous hermaphrodite and has the ability to change sex from female to male.

[4] Centropyge multispinis was first formally described in 1867 by the Scottish naturalist Lambert Playfair (1828-1899) with the type locality given as Zanzibar.