Meet our September Fish of the Month, the Painted Comber, Serranus scriba, a small but spectacularly decorated member of the sea bass family. Its name says it all: the intricate scribble of blue and red lines across its head looks as though an artist signed their work, and once you have seen one up close, it is hard to forget.
Survey Regions: The Painted Comber is a signature species of the Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean (EAM) survey region. REEF surveyors encounter it throughout the Mediterranean, as well as in the eastern Atlantic from the Bay of Biscay south along the coast of Africa and around the Canary Islands and Azores. It favors shallow rocky reefs and seagrass meadows, often in easy view of snorkelers and divers.
Size: Modest but mighty. Adults typically reach 20 to 25 cm / 8 to 10 in, with some individuals growing a little larger.
Identifying Features: Look for a pale, coppery body crossed by five to seven dark vertical bars, a soft blue wash along the belly, and, most distinctively, a maze of bright blue and reddish-brown lines scribbled across the snout and cheeks. That head pattern is the quickest way to separate it from its close relative, the Comber (Serranus cabrilla). Painted Combers are curious and often hold their ground, letting patient observers get a good, long look.
Fun Facts: The species name scriba comes from the Latin for "scribe," a nod to those pen-and-ink markings. Like many of its sea bass relatives, the Painted Comber is a simultaneous hermaphrodite, carrying both male and female reproductive tissue at the same time. It is a confident little ambush predator, too, hunting small fish and crustaceans across the reef and seagrass beds it calls home.
See the Painted Comber in the wild. Want to meet this little artist in person? It is a classic sighting on our Cyprus Field Survey Trip, September 11 to 18, 2027, REEF's second Mediterranean adventure, based on the beautiful island of Cyprus and led by REEF Education Coordinator Mead Krówka. Spaces are available. Register today and email trips@REEF.org with any questions.
Photo by Sylvain Le Bris