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Fish4Life provides everything you need to enjoy seafood responsibly. Explore information and practical tips for safe and sustainable seafood consumption, and help protect marine life by reporting undersized or illegally traded seafood.

Redcoat
Sargocentron rubrum
Ακανθόπερκα

Sustainability Status

Sustainable food source

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Help us protect our seas by reporting illegal or undersized fish that you see in markets, restaurants or fishing boats
Good choice – Consumption of this species is currently considered sustainable
Alien / Invasive – This species is not from this region and can have a negative impact on the ecosystem and threaten local biodiversity, so it is sustainable to eat

Legal

Minimum Size

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Prohibited Consumption Period

–

Sustainable

Minimum Size

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Avoid Consumption Period

–

Advice for Consumption

Consumption of this species is currently considered sustainable.

Archipelagos Tips

Consumption of this species helps the ecosystem as it is an alien species!

Be careful when handling them: the dorsal spine can inflict a painful sting.

Common names

FR

Marignan rouget

it

Pesce armato rosso

es

Candil rubio

tr

Asker balığı

pt

Esquilo-vermelho

nl

Roodstreepeekhoornvis

de

Gestreifter Soldatenfisch

toxicity

This species is safe to consume.
The spine can inflict painful sting, be careful when handling them.

iucn info

Least concern (LC)

Description

It has a streamlined, compressed body with a short, blunt snout and a terminal to slightly downward-facing mouth. The head bears several small spines, including a prominent spine on the preopercle and smaller spines around the eye and nasal region. The body is brownish-red with silvery-white stripes, while the spinous dorsal fin is dark red with large whitish blotches forming a broad central band. The tips of the dorsal fin are white, except towards the rear, and the cheek is covered with oblique rows of scales.

It looks like Sargocentron cornutum (Horned squirrelfish) and Sargocentron spiniferum (Sabre squirrelfish).

Did you know?

Invasive redcoats utilize their large eyes for nocturnal hunting after leaving their daytime hiding spot, and are very territorial once their spot is established!

Ecological Aspects

Diet

Hyperbenthivorous.
Feed mainly on benthic crabs and shrimps, also preys on small fishes.

habitat

Benthic, in caves.
Found in coastal reefs, silty reefs or wrecks in lagoons, bays, or harbors, may occur in aggregations; also found hidden in caves and cracks of rocks during the day, usually in areas subject to strong currents.

Max size & depth range

Max length: 32 cm
Max weight: 215 g
Depth range: 1-84 m

breeding & Growth

Gonochoric (separate sexes). It has a short spawning season from July to August.
Growth rate: Fast (k = 1,18yr⁻¹).

Longevity & presence

Lifespan: 3-4 years
Max reported age: 4 years
Distribution: It is native to the Indo-West Pacific, ranging from the Red Sea and East Africa to Japan, Samoa, and Australia. As a Lessepsian migrant, it also invaded the Eastern Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal.

appearance changes

It undergoes a distinct morphological shift from its pelagic larval stage to its juvenile and adult stages. This transformation involves primary changes in body coloration and fin patterns. Pelagic larvae are mostly transparent or silver-blue. Upon settling in coastal and rocky habitats, they transition to a silvery body with bluish upper parts and bright silvery flanks. The adult develops striking, alternating longitudinal stripes of brownish-red and silvery-white.

Reproductive Cycle

Estimated absolute fecundity ranges from 100,000 to 600,000 eggs per mature female. Spawning time once per year.
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Good choice – Consumption of this species is currently considered sustainable

Illegal species – Fishing, selling and consumption of this species is illegal

Fishstocks – Declining due to overexploitation

Think before you eat – This species faces increasing pressures and should only be consumed responsibly

Bad choice – Consumption of this species is unsustainable

Health concerns –
Can accumulate dangerously high levels of toxic substances harmful to health

Alien / Invasive – This species is not from this region and can have a negative impact on the ecosystem and threaten local biodiversity, so it is sustainable to eat

Aquafarms – You will commonly find this species coming from aquafarms