diplodus cervinus hottentotus

South Africa has a very rich biodiversity. A highly rich source of this biodiversity is the

sea…There are numerous fish in the sea and the

Zebra is one example.The Zebra, though not as well known as some

species of fish, is nonetheless an interesting fish.

The following should provide some basic insight on this fish. Enjoy.

Won-Ji Kim

In South Africa, this is a recreational species and has a bag limit of 5 for those who have a recreational angling permit. This is probably one reason why this species is not so well known i.e. as it is not a commercial species, it is no interest to the general public.

The other common name for this specie is: Wilderperd

The Zebra is endemic and in South Africa the fish can be found from False Bay to Kosi Bay.

The Zebra can be found in gullies, on rocky shores, in rock pools, often in estuaries and also offshore.

The Zebra is quite oval in shape and has a pointed snout. It has five black stripes down the side of its body and a black bar runs across the eyes. The stripes are faint or can be absent from the fish at night.

The fish itself is silvery or yellowish.

The Zebra can reach to a size of 50cm with a weight of just over 6kg.

Its moderate mouth is surrounded by soft and fleshy lips.

Its body is covered with 55 to 60 series of scales but excluded the forehead between the eyes where it is naked.

The Zebra is never abundant throughout its range but provides a good fight when caught by anglers and is therefore fun to catch. Fishing on light tackle produces the most fun.

It is quite a good tasting fish but freshly caught Zebras have a strong and rather nauseating odour.

It is quite commonly caught by surf anglers especially in gullies along rocky shores like the Cape Coast. It is also caught by ski-boat anglers and is easily speared.

Baits that should be used for this fish are prawns, shrimps, polychaete worms and chokka. Dropshot also works quite well for these fish.

The fish can be confused with a sergeant major damselfish which also has dark bars on its silvery yellow body, but it has a small mouth with many tiny teeth.

http://www.fishbase.gr/summary/speciessummary.php?id=7932

http://www.south-african-game-reserves.com/fish/zebra.htm

Coastal Fishes of Southern Africa, Phil and Elaine Heemstra

A Guide to the Common Sea Fishes of Southern Africa, Rudy van der Elst

Images taken from Google images.

A video of this fish can be viewed on Fishbase but with a requirement of Mozilla Firefox.

The song used in this powerpoint is Bryan Adams song ‘This is Where I Belong’.

I hope this proves informative and that you have learnt something new.

Won-Ji Kim