Parrotfish
| Parrotfish | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Bicolour parrotfish | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Superclass: | Osteichthyes |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Perciformes |
| Suborder: | Labroidei |
| Family: | Scaridae |
| Genera | |
|
Bolbometopon |
|
Parrotfishes are a group of fishes that used to be thought of as a family (Scaridae), but now are usuaully considered a subfamily (Scarinae) of the wrasses.[1] They live in shallow tropical and subtropical oceans around the world. Their numbers are largest in the Indo-Pacific region. They mostly live in coral reefs and seagrass beds. They take an important part in bioerosion.[2] There are about 90 species of parrotfish living today.
Parrotfish are very colourful. 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. You can see these on the sea bed floor during the following day.
References [change]
- ↑ Westneat, M. W. and M. E. Alfaro (2005). "Phylogenetic relationships and evolutionary history of the reef fish family Labridae." Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 36(2): 201-428.
- ↑ 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 [change]
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Scaridae |
