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Trees- ShrubsComber (Serranus cabrilla)
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Serranus cabrilla is a medium sized fish, 5-20cm in length, with a maximum length of 25cm (1) (2). The body form is elongate (2) and the large head contains sharp teeth and a pair of canines in the upper jaw; three spines are also present on the upper part of the operculum (1).
The dorsal fin of S. cabrilla has 10 spines and 13-15 soft rays; the anal fin has 3 spines and 7-8 soft rays, the caudal fin is truncate to slightly emarginated (2). There are 63-68 lateral line scales up to the caudal base (1).
Comber has a yellowish to reddish colour and 7-9 brown vertical bands on the upper part (2). Several yellow or orange longitudinal lines are present on the side of the head.
The comber is a benthic species found on the shelf and upper slope on sandy, muddy, rocky bottoms and in Posidonia seagrass beds (1; 2; 3); to depths of approximately 500m (2; 3).
The spawning season of S. cabrilla is in the spring and winter (1; 2), the egg and larvae are planktonic. These fish are simultaneous hermaphrodites possessing both testicles and ovaries (1).
S. cabrilla is found in the Eastern Atlantic from the south of England to South Africa; the comber is also found in Madeira, the Azores, the Canary Islands, the Mediterranean and Black Sea (1) (2) (4).
The Comber is a carnivore; it mainly feeds on crustaceans, molluscs, polychaetes and small fish (1) (2).
Not evaluated under the IUCN Redlist (5).
Description written by Ben Harvey (2009)
(1) Golani, D., Özturk, B. and Başusta, N. 2006. Fishes of the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkish Marine Research Foundation, Istanbul, Turkey. 259pp.
(2) Linnaeus, C. 1758. Systema Naturae, ed. X, vol. 1, 824 pp. Nantes & Pisces: pp. 230-338. (Reprint, 1956, London.)
(3) Tortonese, E. 1986. Serranidae. Fishes of the north-eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Volume 2. Paris:UNESCO.
(4) Heemstra, P.C. and J.E. Randall. 1986. Serranidae. p. 509-537. In M.M. Smith and P.C. Heemstra (eds.) Smiths’ sea fishes. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
(5) IUCN 2009. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2009.1. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 27 July 2009.
