The brown surgeonfish dance
(Photo: Israel Nature and Parks Authority)
As every year during the summer months, around the longest day of the year, hundreds of brown surgeonfish gather for a spawning dance, reaching its peak just before dusk each day.
The brown surgeonfish is a reef fish common in the Indo-Pacific region. During the summer months, as the water temperature rises in the Gulf of Eilat, one can witness the spawning process at twilight, which lasts about three weeks or sometimes longer.
"Every year at this time, I enjoy observing the unique spawning process of this species," Omri Omesi, an Israel Nature and Parks Authority ranger shared. "This time, it happened in the Coral Reef Reserve. Near sunset, I saw long lines of surgeonfish making their way to fixed points along the reserve's reefs. Just before the crucial moment, which usually lasts about five to ten minutes, you can see hundreds of individuals gathering into a dense school and then moving quickly."
"Small groups of females rise rapidly and release their reproductive products into the water, followed by the males," He added. "It’s a spectacular sight. If divers are fortunate enough to witness this, it’s important to keep a distance and allow the spawning process to proceed without disturbances."
However, the celebration was disrupted, and some surgeonfish were preyed upon. Omesi explained that, as in any ecosystem, there are those who take advantage of the opportunity. Thus, it’s sometimes possible to see species like needlefish and barracudas catching surgeonfish from the school during the spawning process.