Painted Comber

The Painted Comber, which is also commonly referred to as the Scribbled Comber or the Lettered Comber, is one of the most common, beautiful, and curious bottom-dwelling fish of the Mediterranean. It belongs to the Serranidae family, which makes it a close relative of the grouper, and it is famous for its vivid colours. The body is robust and compressed laterally, with a beige-brown colour.

Its most characteristic feature consists of the five to nine bold dark vertical bars that run along its sides. Even more impressive is its head, which is covered in complex, iridescent electric-blue lines that resemble Arabic writing or patterns. This feature is reflected in its scientific name, which means "scribe" or "clerk". It also has a distinctive blue spot on the belly that becomes more pronounced during reproduction.

It is one of the most common fish on rocky bottoms and in Posidonia seagrass meadows. It lives in shallow coastal waters, usually at depths from one to 30 metres, although it can reach up to 150 metres. It is an extremely territorial fish and is often seen standing still over a rock or hole, observing its surroundings. It does not frighten easily and often approaches divers out of curiosity.

The animal is a greedy and aggressive ambush predator. It feeds mainly on small fish, crustaceans such as shrimp and small crabs, and cephalopods. Despite its small size, it lunges boldly at any bait found near it.

The Painted Comber has a rare and fascinating reproductive strategy. It is a simultaneous hermaphrodite species. This means that every individual possesses both fully functional male and female reproductive organs simultaneously. During reproduction which occurs from spring to summer between May and August the fish form pairs and fertilise the eggs of each other. Theoretically, they can self-fertilise, though this is rare in nature.

It is caught very easily by any coastal method, such as handlines, cast lines, and set nets, because it bites at all baits. The meat is white and tasty, but it has many small bones and is somewhat dry. For this reason, it is considered ideal and used almost exclusively for traditional fish soup as it provides excellent flavour and thickens the broth.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies the Painted Comber as a species of Least Concern. Scientific studies have shown that it plays an important role in controlling the populations of small benthic organisms. Furthermore, research on its behaviour showed that it is one of the boldest fish as it often steals prey from other larger fish or octopuses.