The striped red mullet or surmullet (Mullus surmuletus) is a species of goatfish found in the Mediterranean Sea, eastern North Atlantic Ocean, and the Black Sea. They can be found in water as shallow as 5 metres or as deep as 409 metres depending upon the portion of their range that they are in. This species can reach a length of 40 centimetres. Toxic when not cooked. Though most are only around 25 centimetres. The greatest recorded weight for this species is 1 kilogram. This is a commercially important species and is also sought after as a game fish.

We met the Dash-and-dot goatfish Parupeneus barberinus in Mediterranean sea of Cyprus while snorkelling among the rocks of the island. We did not expect to have this meeting in the Mediterranean because it is a tropical fish present in all tropical seas and in particular in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.