Painted comber (Serranus scriba)

Classification (WoRMS)

Full classification as recorded by WoRMS: Kingdom: Animalia · Phylum: Chordata · Class: Teleostei · Order: Perciformes · Family: Serranidae · Genus: Serranus.

Accepted name: Serranus scriba · Authority: (Linnaeus, 1758) · Taxonomic status: accepted · AphiaID: 127043.

Synonyms and superseded combinations recorded for this taxon: Holocentrus argus Spinola, 1807; Holocentrus maroccanus Bloch & Schneider, 1801; Holocentrus moroccanus Bloch & Schneider, 1801; Paracentropristis scriba (Linnaeus, 1758); Perca marina Linnaeus, 1758; Perca scriba Linnaeus, 1758.

Source: World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=127043 (CC BY 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Biology and life history (FishBase)

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

Maximum length: 36 cm · Common length: 25 cm · Depth range: 5–150 m · Habitat zone: demersal · Body shape: fusiform / normal · Vulnerability index: 44 of 100 · Fishery importance: minor commercial.

FishBase notes: Found on rocky bottom and on Posidonia beds. Feed on fishes and crustaceans (Ref. 5506). Also found in muddy and algal or seagrass overgrown substrates. Reported to be a simultaneous hermaphrodite, which tends to spawn from early spring to early summer (Ref. 91154).

Source: FishBase species summary (SpecCode 1761) — https://www.fishbase.se/summary/Serranus-scriba.html (CC BY-NC 3.0 — non-commercial use only). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Distribution and occurrence records (GBIF)

17,087 georeferenced occurrence records for Serranus scriba are published through GBIF from 32 countries or marine areas. The map above plots 136 distinct locations from a sample of 3,000 records, omitting 132 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: France (5,437); Spain (4,743); Croatia (1,821); Italy (1,517); Greece (1,516).

The full country table, WoRMS marine regions and the sampling notes are on this species' Distribution page.

Source: GBIF Occurrence Search (taxonKey 2388714) — https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search?taxon_key=2388714&has_coordinate=true (records CC0 / CC BY); WoRMS distribution records (MarineRegions) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=127043 (CC BY 4.0); Natural Earth 110m basemap — https://www.naturalearthdata.com/ (public domain). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Conservation status (IUCN Red List)

The IUCN Red List assesses Serranus scriba (Linnaeus, 1758) 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 198713) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/198713/0; GBIF IUCN Red List category endpoint (taxonKey 2388714) — https://api.gbif.org/v1/species/2388714/iucnRedListCategory. Accessed 2026-09-23.

Description and natural history (Wikipedia)

The painted comber has a laterally compressed, elongate body with a pointed snout. The dorsal fin has 10 spines and 4–16 soft rays and the anal fin has 3 spines and 7–8 soft rays. The caudal fin is truncate. It has a very large mouth for its size, which has many sharp teeth, and is protractile. The overall colour may be grey, purplish or reddish with 5–7 dark brown bars on the flanks. The head is marked with many narrow, wavy blue lines and red blotches. The dorsal, anal and caudal fins are marked with red dots. There is a diffuse, purplish-blue blotch in the middle of the body. The pelvic and pectoral fins are normally uniform pale yellow. The maximum recorded fish measurement is 36 cm, although 25 cm is more typical.

The painted comber is found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean where its core range extends from the Straits of Gibraltar to Senegal, including the Canary Islands but it occurs as far north as the Bay of Biscay. Its range extends into the Mediterranean and Black Seas. One of the most abundant places for Painted Comber is Marmaris.

The painted comber occurs over rocky bottom and among beds of Posidonia at depths of 5 to 150 m. It normally spends the day sheltering in rocky caves and is normally either solitary or found in small groups. It emerges at dusk to hunt. It is a carnivorous species which is a territorial ambush hunter and has a diet made up of cephalopods, bivalves, crustaceans, fishes, and worms. It is often used to indicate sites occupied by octopuses as it waits at the entrance scavenging the octopus's discarded parts of shellfish. The spawning season runs from late spring to early summer with the eggs being laid under stones near the shore. It is a synchronous hermaphrodite, i.e. each individual has both male and female gonads and may be capable of self-fertilisation. They have a maximum life expectancy of 16 years.

The painted comber, like most fishes, is host to a variety of internal and external parasites and these include the copepods Lernanthropus scribae, Caligus scribae and Anchistrotos laqueus; an isopod Gnathia sp.; a monogenean Protolamellodiscus serranelli; and two species of digeneans Helicometra fasciata and Lecithochirium musculus.

The painted comber was first formally described by Linnaeus in the 10th Edition of his Systema Naturae published in 1758 as Perca scriba.

The painted comber is landed by artisanal fisheries using hook and line and trawls. It is said to have palatable flesh and can be prepared using a variety of cooking methods.

Source: Wikipedia: Painted comber — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Painted_comber (CC BY-SA 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-23.