Two different juvenile red steenbras seen on consecutive days.
Not yet an adult, but a much larger individual, seen at Pyramid Rock.
All photos Guido Zsilavecz
The Pyramid Rock, which lies in a no-take zone, is the best place to see red steenbras on the Cape Peninsula. The bottom is a relatively low rocky reef, save a few large boulders, creating a relatively sparse kelp forest, which extends for quite a large area. This is clearly an environment which the red steenbras likes, as at nearby Castle they are seen much less frequently. Small juveniles are always rare. Seeing several juveniles at A-Frame is thus quite unusual.
As can be seen from the photos the juvenile fish are silvery, with a yellow underside extending up the flanks further back, and a very distinct dark spot at the tail-end of the dorsal fin. These characteristics dissapear as the fish increases in size, although the large specimen shown (about 1m long) still has remnants of it. The juveniles were about 15 to 20 cm long.
Coastal Fishes of the Cape Peninsula and False Bay, A Diver' Identification Guide, G. Zsilavecz, 2005