Parrotfish

Parrotfish
	Bicolour parrotfish
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Labriformes
Family:	Scaridae

Parrotfishes are a group of marine fishes that live in shallow tropical and subtropical oceans around the world. Previously considered to form the large family of wrasses, these fish are now thought to belong to their own family.

Their numbers are largest in the Indo-Pacific region where they are found in and around coral reefs and seagrass beds. They play an important and significant role in bioerosion.^[1] There are about 95 species of parrotfish living today. Parrotfish are very colorful. Their name comes from the parrot-like beak formed by their teeth. The buccal cavity (cheek) of the parrotfish secretes the 'sleeping sack' that the fish sleeps in overnight. It is a semi-translucent sack which completely surrounds the parrot fish. In the morning the sack is discarded. During the day you will see them on the seabed floor.

The mucus

Some parrotfish species, including the queen parrotfish (Scarus vetula), secrete a mucus cocoon, particularly at night.

Taxonomy

Genera

Bolbometopon
Calotomus
Cetoscarus
Chlorurus
Cryptotomus
Hipposcarus
Leptoscarus
Nicholsina
Scarus
Sparisoma

Parrotfish Media

Scarus zelindae in its mucus cocoon
The strong beak of Bolbometopon muricatum is able to grind the sturdiest corals.
The bicolor parrotfish (Cetoscarus bicolor) was described by Eduard Rüppell in 1829. In 1835, he mistakenly described the terminal phase, featured on this photo, as a separate species, C. pulchellus
Scarus globiceps (male)
Chlorurus microrhinos
Bolbometopon muricatum
Calotomus viridescens
Chlorurus sordidus
Hipposcarus longiceps

Related pages

List of fish common names

References

↑
See:
- Streelman, J. T., M. E. Alfaro, et al. (2002). "Evolutionary History of The Parrotfishes: Biogeography, Ecomorphology, and Comparative Diversity." Evolution 56(5): 961-971.
- Bellwood, D. R., Hoey, A. S., J. H. Choat. (2003). "Limited functional redundancy in high diversity systems: resilience and ecosystem function on coral reefs." Ecology Letters 6(4): 281–285.
- Lokrantz, J., Nyström, Thyresson, M., M., C. Johansson. (2008). "The non-linear relationship between body size and function in parrotfishes." Coral reefs 27(4): 967-974.

Other websites

Parrot Fish Profile from National Geographic Archived 2008-10-14 at the Wayback Machine
Parrot Fish Care
Parrotfish info on Fishbase

[1] See:
Streelman, J. T., M. E. Alfaro, et al. (2002). "Evolutionary History of The Parrotfishes: Biogeography, Ecomorphology, and Comparative Diversity." Evolution 56(5): 961-971.

Bellwood, D. R., Hoey, A. S., J. H. Choat. (2003). "Limited functional redundancy in high diversity systems: resilience and ecosystem function on coral reefs." Ecology Letters 6(4): 281–285.

Lokrantz, J., Nyström, Thyresson, M., M., C. Johansson. (2008). "The non-linear relationship between body size and function in parrotfishes." Coral reefs 27(4): 967-974.

[2] Streelman, J. T., M. E. Alfaro, et al. (2002). "Evolutionary History of The Parrotfishes: Biogeography, Ecomorphology, and Comparative Diversity." Evolution 56(5): 961-971.

[3] Bellwood, D. R., Hoey, A. S., J. H. Choat. (2003). "Limited functional redundancy in high diversity systems: resilience and ecosystem function on coral reefs." Ecology Letters 6(4): 281–285.

[4] Lokrantz, J., Nyström, Thyresson, M., M., C. Johansson. (2008). "The non-linear relationship between body size and function in parrotfishes." Coral reefs 27(4): 967-974.

[1]