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Species · Offshore

Creole Fish

Paranthias furcifer

Also called Creole-fish.

Rules in 0 state rulebooks, checked Sep 22, 2026. Every rule names its source and the day it was last checked; the official rulebook is the final word.

Studio photograph of a Creole Fish (Paranthias furcifer), side view, on a white background

How to tell it

Red-brown grouper relative with three or four white spots along the back and a forked tail; schools above reefs.

Often mistaken for

One fish that gets called creole fish, and what gives it away.

Rules for

Every state

StateSizeBagSeasonToday

Not specifically regulated in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida (Atlantic), Florida (Gulf), Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia: each state’s rule for unlisted species applies there (on its page).

On the table

Edible.

Related fish

Side by side: Creole Fish vs Creole Wrasse.

In the app

Point the camera at a creole fish and the name appears before you take the picture, with these rules for the water you’re standing in. No signal needed, and every catch goes in the log.

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Questions anglers ask about creole fish

How do you tell creole fish from creole wrasse?

Creole Fish: Red-brown grouper relative with three or four white spots along the back and a forked tail; schools above reefs. Creole wrasse: purple-blue, a wrasse.