Sargocentron cornutum

Horned Squirrelfish | Red and White Soldierfish | Redstriped Squirrelfish | Threespot Squirrelfish
Sargocentron cornutum
Sargocentron cornutum, (Night Phase) New Year Island, Northern Territory, Australia, Photo: Graham Edgar

Distribution

Tropical Indo-Pacific


Description

Characterised by three dark blotches on the rear of the body - at the base of the rear dorsal fin, the base of the anal fin and on the tail base. Distinguished from very similar S. rubrum primarily by the dark blotch on the tail base, which is more of a streak in S. rubrum. Also typically has narrower white stripes along the body, although this can vary. Remains hidden deep inside caves during the day.


Information

Max Size: 27 cm

Sea Temperature Range: 16.8-31.3°C

Depth: 6-40 m

Habitat Generalization Index: 0.82

Also referred to as the SGI (Species Generalisation Index), this describes the habitat niche breadth of the species. Species with values less than 15 are found in a relatively narrow range of reef habitat types (specialists), while those over 25 may be found on most hard substrates within their range (generalists). Learn more here.


Conservation and Rarity

IUCN Status: Not Evaluated

Occurrence: Infrequent (2.3% of sites)

Occurrence describes how often the species is found on surveys within its distribution. It is calculated as the % of reef sites surveyed by RLS divers across all the ecoregions in which the species has been observed

Abundance: Few (4 per transect)

Abundance is calculated as the average number of individuals recorded per RLS transect, where present.