Optivus agastos
A small, uncommon reef fish logged across New South Wales, comfortable from 14.6 to 24.3 C, seen year-round on Australian dive sites.
A small, deep-bodied fish at around 7 cm, with a violet to reddish-pink sheen and noticeably large eyes typical of the roughy family. Look for the compact, almost egg-shaped profile and rough-edged scales that give the family its name. It tends to sit close to structure rather than out in open water, so its colour often reads as a dull rose flush against rock or reef in torchlight.
Divers typically find this one tucked close to rock or reef structure rather than swimming in open water, consistent with its small size and shy build. It's logged as uncommon at most sites, so sightings tend to come from divers searching ledges and crevices carefully rather than spotting it mid-water. No aggressive or bold behaviour has been reported around divers.
It belongs to the roughy family (Trachichthyidae), a group better known for deep-water, slow-growing species, yet this one turns up within normal recreational diving range in NSW rather than staying confined to deep water.
There's no clear seasonal pattern in the sightings logged so far, so treat it as a year-round possibility on NSW reefs. Its observed range of 14.6 to 24.3 C spans NSW's winter and summer water temperatures, which fits with sightings not being tied to a particular month.
Every logged sighting for this species so far comes from New South Wales, Australia, making it the place to look if you want a real shot at one. Within the region it turns up as an uncommon find spread across multiple sites rather than concentrated at one famous spot, so it rewards divers doing several dives along the NSW coast.
Mapping where Violet Roughy is logged…
Currently all logged sightings are from New South Wales, Australia, spread across several dive sites rather than one single hotspot. It's an uncommon find, so patient, careful searching pays off.
There isn't a detected season for this species, so it's considered a year-round sighting in NSW. It has been observed across a wide temperature range, from 14.6 to 24.3 C, which covers most of the region's diving conditions.
Look for a small, deep-bodied fish around 7 cm long with a violet to pinkish tone and large eyes. It usually stays close to rock or reef structure rather than swimming in open water.
They're small, typically reaching around 7 cm in length, so they're easy to overlook against a busy reef background.
No, they pose no danger to divers. They're a small, shy reef fish with no reported aggressive behaviour.
Its conservation status hasn't been formally assessed yet, so there's no listed threat level. There's nothing in current data suggesting cause for concern.
Site and sighting data is aggregated from diver logs, iNaturalist and GBIF. For taxonomy and conservation status:
Soldierfish
3,621 sites
