Justin Prentice is an avid angler based in south-west Western Australia, who had the unexpected catch of a beautifully coloured Red Emperor Lutjanus sebae. The fish was caught in the Bunbury region and appears to be well south of its normal range… somewhere in the order of 500km south! Red Emperor are more commonly found across the northern half of Australia. In the same trip, Justin and the crew caught the more well-known southern species of Pink Snapper and Dhufish.

So is this a vagrant that journeyed well south on a warm current? Or are we seeing the species establish further south? You can help monitor the movement by logging any sightings you have of Red Emperor south of Shark Bay in Western Australia, or if you spot it anywhere in New South Wales http://www.redmap.org.au/species/1/108/