Zebra Seabream

Diplodus hottentotus has a deep, oval and compressed body with a depth that fits into the standard length between 2 and 2.3 times. The dorsal fin is supported by 11 spines and 12 or 13 soft rays while the anal fin is supported by 3 spines and 11 soft rays. There are 15 fin rays on the pectoral fins. The upper jaw has 10 or 12 incisor-like teeth in the front of the upper jaw and 8 in the lower jaw. The background colour of the body is bright yellow with 5 wide vertical dark bars along the back and flanks, the snout is black and the gill cover is grey. The fins are grey too, except in juveniles which have a pink caudal fin with a black bar at its base. The maximum published total length for this species is 60 cm (24 in), although 30 cm (12 in) is more typical.

Diplodus hottentotus is found in the southwestern Indian Ocean off the south and eastern coasts of South Africa and southern Mozambique. There is a disjunct population in the southeastern Atlantic Ocean off Angola which may be taxonomically distinct. The zebra is a sedentary fish that is found in rocky habitats from the surf-zone as deep as 120 m (390 ft) in submarine canyons. The juveniles are also very sedentary and occur on shallow reefs in below the low tide mark, gullies, tidal pools and in the mouths of estuaries.

Diplodus hottentotus has the specific name hottentotus, a latinisation of the pejorative term hottentot, a name given by the original Dutch colonists to the Cape to the indigenous people of that region. In this case it is thought to be geographical, referring to the South African coast.