The barber perch (Caesioperca rasor), also called the barber sea perch, red perch or Tasmanian barber, is endemic to Australia, found from southern Victoria to southwestern Western Australia, including Tasmania.[2]
The barber perch is a laterally compressed, deep-bodied fish growing to a maximum length of 26 cm (10 in). Females and larger juveniles are a pinkish colour with a large black vertical bar on the flank towards the posterior end and a blue streak just under the eye. Smaller juveniles additionally have a black head. Males are similarly marked but their overall hue is silvery or yellowish. They additionally have blue margins to the fins and a small blue spot on each scale.[2]
It differs from the closely related Butterfly perch by having a more slender body and males are more blue with a darker bar, rather than blotch, on the side.[3] The two species sometimes form mixed shoals.[3]
The barber perch is a schooling species of fish which forms dense shoals at depths down to about 180 m (591 ft).[4] It is largely a piscivore.[5]
The barber perch (Caesioperca rasor), also called the barber sea perch, red perch or Tasmanian barber, is endemic to Australia, found from southern Victoria to southwestern Western Australia, including Tasmania.
