Common Name
Spanish Flag
Year Described
Cuvier, 1828
Identification
Dorsal Fin: VIII, 13
Anal Fin: III, 7
Pectoral Fin:
Pelvic Fin: I, 5
Gill Rakers:
Lateral Line Scales: 47-49
Vertebrae: 24 (10 precaudal, 14 caudal)
Body deep (depth equal to head length). Head 42-45% of SL. Profile straight. Jaws with small depressible teeth and a few larger fixed canines. Preopercle with a forwards-pointing spine at angle that is usually covered in skin. Opercle with a very large spine. Dorsal fin longer on spiny portion. Pelvic fin connected to body on basal third. Pectoral fin rounded. Caudal peduncle thick. Tail blunt to slightly rounded. Lateral line curved under spiny dorsal. Scales ctenoid.
Color
Body bright salmon-red to orange-red with six yellow stripes on the body. The topmost stripe runs anteriorly through the eye. The cheek has multiple yellow spots. Dorsal fin yellow with a few red stripes. Anal fin pale yellow with a large cherry red blotch. Caudal fin yellow with red upper borders. Pectoral fins reddish on the rays with clear membranes. Eye golden.
Size
Maximum size to 30cm SL.
Habitat
Found mostly on deep reefs and rocky areas from 35-460m.
Range
Scattered records from the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean, and south to S. Brazil.
References
McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. 2005. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. Volume 2: Scorpaeniformes to Tetraodontiformes. University of Texas Press, Austin. i-viii +1-1004.