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Red Bandfish

Red Bandfish

Cepola Schlegelii

Quick Facts

Scientific nameCepola Schlegelii

FamilyBandfish / Cepolida

Distribution

Habitat & AU DistributionCoastal waters in sandy or muddy burrows

The Red Bandfish is a long, ribbon-like fish with a vivid reddish body that can grow to about 50 cm. Its body tapers to a pointed tail, giving it a shape unlike almost any other fish on the reef.
In Australia, Red Bandfish have been recorded off Bernier Island in Western Australia and north of Wessel Island in the Northern Territory, including the Gulf of Carpentaria. The species also lives across the wider tropical west Pacific.
Red Bandfish live on muddy and sandy seabeds, typically at depths of around 15 to 136 m. They prefer soft, sheltered ground where the sediment is easy to dig into.
One of their most striking habits is digging vertical burrows in the seabed and living inside them. Rather than roaming freely, they use the burrow as a home base.
They do not always stay underground. Red Bandfish can be found swimming in open water above the seabed, sometimes alone and sometimes in small groups.
The colour of the Red Bandfish is a useful clue for spotting it. Its body is a warm red, while the cheek, gill cover and the base of the pectoral fins are noticeably whitish by contrast.
Its mouth is large and tilted at an angle, pointing slightly upward. Large eyes sit prominently on the head, giving the fish good vision for hunting in low light near the bottom.
Like other bandfishes, Red Bandfish are thought to feed mainly on small crustaceans and tiny arrow-shaped animals known as chaetognaths. These drift through the water close to the seabed.
The eggs of bandfishes drift freely in open water after being released. The young fish eventually settle to the bottom as they grow.
The Red Bandfish belongs to the family Cepolidae, a small group of elongated fishes found in tropical and warm waters across the Indo-Pacific and beyond. There are only a handful of species in the family.
There is still plenty to learn about Red Bandfish in Australian waters. Specific details about their growth, lifespan and breeding in this region remain limited.

Species Interaction

Red Bandfish: A Burrowing Fish Few People Ever See

Research & Rare Encounters
Ecosystem Role

The Red Bandfish is a rarely encountered species that spends its life in burrows in soft sediment, from shallow coastal waters to depths beyond 70 metres. Its secretive, burrowing lifestyle means divers and snorkellers almost never cross its path. Most of what is known comes from museum specimens and taxonomic research, with questions about how many species the name covers still unresolved.

Species
Sustainability

Scientific Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Teleostei
Order: Eupercaria incertae sedis
Family: Cepolidae
Genus: Cepola
Species: Cepola schlegelii

Conservation Status

The conservation status of the Red Bandfish has not been assessed by the IUCN Red List, and it holds no listing under Australia’s EPBC Act. It is a rarely encountered, burrowing species with limited documentation, and fishes of this group are seldom subject to formal population assessments.