The bodies of males are largely reddish above with each scale having a yellow spot and a red edge.

The lower parts of head and the body are pale pink, with a scarlet streak on the middle of the throat.

When breeding the pinkish red scale margins on the flanks of the males intensify tog scarlet and the yellow spot in the scale centres of the scales becomes darker, they also develop an irregular, diffuse, mid-lateral white band which starts to the rear of the gill cover and gradually becomes broader as it reaches the tail, this band is widest above the anal fin where it covers the upper half of the base of the caudal fin and the caudal peduncle creating an obvious white oval spot on the upper part of the caudal peduncle.

The lower half of the body is pale purple to white, with a red streak on the centre of the throat.

The diet should be offered at least twice a day and release into the upstream, so water currents carry food to their location.

When they difficult to get feeding, fortified live adult brine shrimp may be necessary for their diet until they accept other types of aquarium foods like fresh marine fish and invertebrate flesh.

Pseudanthias heemstrai, a new species of anthiine fish (Perciformes: Serranidae) from the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea.