Suez fusilier (Caesio suevica)

Classification (WoRMS)

Full classification as recorded by WoRMS: Kingdom: Animalia · Phylum: Chordata · Class: Teleostei · Order: Eupercaria incertae sedis · Family: Caesionidae · Genus: Caesio.

Accepted name: Caesio suevica · Authority: Klunzinger, 1884 · Taxonomic status: accepted · AphiaID: 219993.

Synonyms and superseded combinations recorded for this taxon: Caesio suevicus Klunzinger, 1884.

Source: World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=219993 (CC BY 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Biology and life history (FishBase)

Measured values published by FishBase for Caesio suevica. Only fields the database actually holds for this species are shown; these are database values, not aquarium guidance.

Maximum length: 35 cm · Depth range: 2–25 m · Habitat zone: reef-associated · Body shape: fusiform / normal · Vulnerability index: 25 of 100 · Fishery importance: subsistence fisheries · Aquarium trade: never/rarely.

FishBase notes: Inhabits coastal areas, primarily on coral reefs. Forms large midwater aggregations and feeds on zooplankton. Oviparous, with numerous, small pelagic eggs (Ref. 402).

Source: FishBase species summary (SpecCode 922) — https://www.fishbase.se/summary/Caesio-suevica.html (CC BY-NC 3.0 — non-commercial use only). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Distribution and occurrence records (GBIF)

279 georeferenced occurrence records for Caesio suevica are published through GBIF from 7 countries or marine areas. The map above plots 33 distinct locations from a sample of 279 records, omitting 3 inland records that carry an institution's coordinates rather than a collection site; it shows where the species has been observed and reported, not a modelled range.

Most records by country or area: Egypt (228); Saudi Arabia (38); Israel (5); Sudan (3); Somalia (3); Jordan (1); Maldives (1).

Marine regions with a valid WoRMS distribution record: Eritrean Exclusive Economic Zone; Red Sea.

Source: GBIF Occurrence Search (taxonKey 2374777) — https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search?taxon_key=2374777&has_coordinate=true (records CC0 / CC BY); WoRMS distribution records (MarineRegions) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=219993 (CC BY 4.0); Natural Earth 110m basemap — https://www.naturalearthdata.com/ (public domain). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Conservation status (IUCN Red List)

The IUCN Red List assesses Caesio suevica Klunzinger, 1884 as Least Concern (code LC). No trend, population estimate or threat analysis is given here, because none is available from this source without the Red List API; follow the source link for the full assessment, including its date.

Source: IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (taxon 20249860) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/20249860/0; GBIF IUCN Red List category endpoint (taxonKey 2374777) — https://api.gbif.org/v1/species/2374777/iucnRedListCategory. Accessed 2026-09-25.

Description and natural history (Wikipedia)

Caesio suevica was first formally described in 1884 by the German zoologist Carl Benjamin Klunzinger with the type locality given as El Qoseir on the Red Sea coast of Egypt. In his 1987 review of the genus Caesio, Kent E. Carpenter placed this species in the subgenus Flavicaesio. The specific name means "belonging to Suez", the Gulf of Suez being just to the north of the type locality.

Caesio suevica has a moderately slender, fusiform and laterally compressed body. The jaws, vomer and palatines have small conical teeth. The dorsal fin has 10 spines and 14-15 soft rays while the anal fin has 3 spines and 12 soft rays. This species can reach a maximum total length of 35 cm.

These fishes are light silver blue, with fine gray stripes. The back shows a yellow line starting at the base of the dorsal fin. Ventrally they are paler. The tip of each caudal-fin lobe has a black blotch bordered by a white band.

Caesio suevica is endemic to the Red Sea records from elsewhere in the Indian Ocean are probably misidentifications. The Suez fusilier inhabits coastal areas, especially on coral reefs, at a depth from 2 to 25 m.

Caesio suevica form large midwater aggregations. They are oviparous. Females lay many, small pelagic eggs. They mainly feed on zooplankton, mostly ctenophores and scyphozoans.

Caesio suevica is sometimes fished for using handlines and gill nets. It is not a frequent target species for fisheries although, in Jordan, it is a commercially important.

Source: Wikipedia: Caesio suevica — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caesio_suevica (CC BY-SA 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-25.