Red Gurnard

Red gurnard (Chelidonichthys cuculus) are members of the Triglidae family that contains “true” gurnards as well as “flying gurnards”. Red gurnard are similar to most gurnards, having a very interesting appearance. This species have a large, spiky, “box like” head with a deeply sloping forehead and a large mouth at its front-bottom side. As the name implies, they are bright red above and paler red on the underparts with fins that are also shades of red/pink. The front rays of their pectoral fins are separate, able to be manipulated and used to “walk” on the substrate in search of food. The maximum reported length of red gurnard is 70 cm. (27.5 in.), but most fish caught are in the range 25-35 cm (10-14 in.) and the masses of the fish are usually below 2 kg. (4.5 lbs). They can, however, live for at least 21 years and, are thus, fairly slow growing. These fish feed mostly on bottom living invertebrates, such as crabs and shrimps, but will take small fish occasionally. Red gurnard are usually solitary, but can shoal during the summer spawning season. Male fish are generally larger than females and red gurnard can emit a “croaking” which sounds a bit like a frog.

Most red gurnard are caught from small boats along coastlines in the UK and around the Mediterranean Sea, but shore fishing, particularly from some suitable areas in the UK, can sometimes also be productive. The species is often caught as by-catch while, due to its normally fairly small size, people rarely go specifically “fishing for red gurnard.” To catch red gurnard it is best to use bait from the shore and favourite, baits are squid, octopus or fish fillets. From small boats these natural baits can be used, but small artificial lures such as jigging-offers and plastics, are becoming popular at some localities. While red gurnard can feed by sight they also locate prey using the pectoral fin rays and so a slowly moving bait can work well, bringing the bait to the fish. Drifting in a slow current in a small boat over suitable substrate can also work well and either artificial lures or natural bait can be successful in these circumstances. Red gurnard are considered to be excellent eating and the capture of a large specimen is very possible and quite an achievement.