The body is elongated, spindle-shaped, somewhat compressed from the sides, covered with scales of medium size. The rows of scales on the back are parallel to the lateral line. In the lateral line 47β53 scales. The upper jaw is covered with scales, but without longitudinal ridges; its posterior margin reaches the vertical, passing through the middle of the orbit of the eye. The lower jaw protrudes slightly forward. The teeth on the jaws are small, arranged in one row, conical in shape, in front of 1-2 pairs of canine teeth; on the vomer, the teeth are arranged V-shaped, with no back process in the middle part. The interorbital space is flat. The nostrils on each side of the head are close together. On the first branchial arch 17β22 gill stamens , including 11β14 on the lower half. The dorsal fin is solid, but there is a noticeable notch between the barbed and soft parts. In the barbed part there are 10 hard rays, and in the soft part there are 11 soft rays. Scales on dorsal and anal fins absent. In anal fin 3 hard and 8 soft rays. The last soft ray in the dorsal and anal fins is slightly elongated. The pectoral fins are elongated, but slightly shorter than the length of the head, with 15-17 soft rays. The tail fin is fork, the blades are relatively short compared to other members of the genus (their length is from 25 to 30% of the standard body length) [3] [4] [5] .
The body is red to pink in color, the lower part of the body and belly are whitish. The edge of the dorsal fin is red; the edges of the caudal fin blades are red with a white tip on the lower lobe [6] [4] [5] .
The maximum body length is 127 cm, usually up to 65 cm [7] .
Marine bentopelagic fish. They live near rocky reefs on the continental shelf at a depth of 90 to 400 m. They feed on fish and large invertebrates ( crabs , shrimps , cephalopods ). Pelagic salpas were also found in the diet [8] . Along the shores of the New Hebrides, they spawn throughout the year, with a peak in November. In Papua, New Guinea first ripens with a body length of 61 cm, and in the Hawaiian Islands with a body length of 32 cm at the age of 1-2 years [6] [4] [9] . The maximum life expectancy according to different authors varies from 8 to 17 years [9] . Estimates of life expectancy up to 35 years are given [10] .
Widely distributed in the Indo-Pacific region from the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf along the coast of East Africa ; throughout the Indian Ocean and to the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific , including French Polynesia . In the western Pacific Ocean are found from Japan to Australia and New Zealand [6] [4] [5] .
Ruby etelis is a commercial species in many regions throughout the entire range . Catch bottom fishing poles , vertical tiers and bottom trawls . Realized fresh. Popular object of sport fishing [3] [5] . The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assigned the protection status βCauses the least concernβ to this species [11] .
