Shy Soldier, Plectrypops lima

Shy Soldier, Plectrypops lima. Fish caught from coastal waters off Kona, Hawaii, March 2021. Length: 13.5 cm (5.3 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Luke Ovgard, Klamath Falls, Oregon.

The Shy Soldier, Plectrypops lima, is a member of the Squirrelfish or Holocentridae Family, and is also known as the Rough Soldier and the Roughscale Soldierfish and in Mexico as soldado áspero. Globally, there are two species in the genus Plectrypops, both of which are found in Mexican waters, one in the Atlantic and one in the Pacific Ocean.

The Shy Soldier has a deep oval body. Their head has large eyes set on top of the head and a pointed snout with a relatively long, straight forehead with a moderately large slightly oblique mouth. Their caudal fin is small and forked with strongly rounded lobes. They are covered with very rough scales. They are a uniform bright red color. Their anal fin has 4 spines and 10 to 12 rays, and their dorsal fin is continuous with 12 spines and 14 to 16 rays. They are covered with coarse ctenoid scales.

The Shy Soldier are found within reefs at depths between 5 m (16 feet) and 40 m (130 feet). They reach a maximum of 16.0 cm (6.3 inches) in length. They are nocturnal and feed primarily on small crustaceans, crustacean larvae, and small fishes. They are solitary fish that take shelter within the reef during daylight hours and become active as night. They are cryptic and use their ability to blend into the background to avoid predation. They are seldom seen by humans. They are preyed upon by all types of larger fish and marine animals. Reproduction has been poorly studied but is believed to involve spawning in open water with pelagic eggs and larvae settling out in several weeks.

The Shy Soldier is a resident of Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean but has a very limited range being restricted to the Revillagigedo Islands.

The Shy Soldier can be confused with the Bigscale Soldierfish, Myripristis berndti (orange tipped dorsal fin; fins with white tips), the Crimson Soldierfish, Myripristis leiognathus (scales with dark margins), and the Yellow Soldierfish, Myripristis carcinogenesis (yellow – red body).

From a conservation perspective the Shy Soldier is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable widely distributed populations. They are generally too small, seldom seen and inaccessible to be of interest to most.