Silver Drummer

Interesting Info

• The Silver Drummer is a fish species that is found in the southern coastal waters of Australia, from WA to southern Queensland and Tasmania.
• They are a schooling species, preferring the surge zones of reef areas. It’s common for them to school with their cousins the Gladius Drummer or Grey Drummer.
• The Silver Drummer has a compressed, oval-shaped body with a small mouth and small, sharp teeth. They are known for their distinctive silver colour, with a silvery-green back and sides that fade to a silver-white belly.
• They are herbivores, feeding on algae and weeds.
• The Silver Drummer is a popular target for recreational fishing, known for its good fight when caught.
• The breeding behaviour of the Silver Drummer is not well documented, but it is known to spawn during the warmer months of the year. They typically form large spawning aggregations in offshore waters, where they release their eggs and sperm into the water column. The eggs hatch into larvae, which drift with the currents until they settle into suitable habitats, such as seagrass beds or rocky reefs.
• Estimated lifespan is up to 20 years with the fish maturing when reaching the length of 22 – 25cm (around 4 years of age).
• The main predators of Silver Drummer include sharks, larger predatory fish & marine mammals.