Blackbar Soldierfish, Myripristis jacobus
Blackbar Soldierfish, Myripristis jacobus. Underwater photograph taken in coastal waters off Bonaire, December 2019. Photograph and identification courtesy of Bob Hillis, Ivins, Utah.
The Blackbar Soldierfish, Myripristis jacobus, is a member of the Squirrelfish or Holocentridae Family, and is known in Mexico as solidado raya negra. Globally, there are twenty-seven species in the genus Myripristis, of which three are found in Mexican waters, one in the Atlantic and two in the Pacific Ocean.
The Blackbar Soldierfish has an oval, laterally compressed, robust deep body. They are red in color dorsally transitioning to silver ventrally. They have a prominent black vertical bar that runs along the gill cover to the pectoral fins; their spinous portion of the dorsal fin has red and white markings; and, all fins have white margins. Their head has a blunt snout, a convex forehead, very large eyes, a large oblique mouth, and a protruding lower jaw. Their gill cover has one short spine. Their anal fin has 4 spines, with the third being stout and the third or fourth being the longest, and 12 or 13 rays; their caudal fin is forked; their dorsal fin is continuous with a deep notch, disproportionately large, with 10 spines and 1 spine and 12 to 15 rays; and their pelvic fins have 1 spine and 7 rays. The lobes of the anal, caudal and dorsal fins are pointed. They are covered with large rough scales.
The Blackbar Soldierfish is found in aggregations in shallow reef environments and also at depths up to 210 m (700 feet); they are more common at depths up to 30 m (100 feet). They reach a maximum of 25 cm (9.8 inches) in length. They are nocturnal and will take shelter in small caves within rock structures and under ledges during daylight hours. They feed primarily on plankton. They are preyed upon by all types of larger fish and marine animals. They can, at times, be observed swimming upside down. Reproduction is believed to involve spawning in open waters with pelagic eggs and larvae settling out in several weeks. The Blackbar Soldierfish is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.
The Blackbar Soldierfish is a resident of all Mexican waters of the Atlantic Ocean including the Gulf of Mexico and the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in the Caribbean.
The Blackbar Soldierfish, due its red color, body profile, and the prominent black bar on its gill cover is a straightforward identification. They are very similar to the Shy Soldierfish, Plectrypops retroispinis, that lacks the black bar.
From a conservation perspective the Blackbar Soldierfish is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. They are an incidental catch by artisanal fishermen in traps but only retained on a limited basis for consumption as they are not considered to be a quality food fish. They are utilized by the aquarium trade on a limited basis.