Anthias

Photo: Sean Rowan Laughlin · © all rights reserved

Sea goldie anthias form enormous mixed-sex schools over Shaab Sharm's inner reef crest, their orange-and-pink colouration creating one of the Red Sea's most visually spectacular reef cloud experiences. They are protogynous hermaphrodites — the largest, most dominant female in any local group transitions to male if the resident male dies, ensuring continuous reproductive coverage. Their zooplankton diet keeps them permanently positioned above the reef in the current path, making them among the most current-dependent reef fish in the ecosystem.