Comber
Serranus cabrilla
Special features
The Comber is one of the fish that can change their base coloring depending on the environment in which it lives.
It is darker in corals and seagrass beds and lighter in muddy soils.
Appearance
The Comber has an elongated body that is highest in the middle.
Light and dark stripes run across its body from top to bottom, and one characteristically bright line runs from the mouth to the caudal fin.
The caudal fin is broom-shaped, the dorsal fin is long and spiny.
Its eyes and mouth are remarkably large compared to the size of its body.
Natural enemies
Common octopus (Octopus vulgaris)
Dangerous/Venomous
The sawbass is neither dangerous nor venomous.
Sketch
1. 7-9 dark stripes
2. Spiny dorsal fin
3. Often serrated caudal fin
4. White stripe from head to tail fin
Pro tips
In contrast to the Painted comber (Serranus scriba), which likes to move in shallow water on rocky ground, the Comber prefers muddy soils and deeper water.
It is a territorial loner that hunts for small fish, cephalopods, and crustaceans.
The Comber is hermaphrodite.
This means that every animal has both male and female sex organs.
When the fry are only 2.5cm tall, they already look like their parents.
Text: Carolina Leiter, Felician Hosp, Pia Balaka
Pic: Dive Dict
Illustration: Dive Dict
