Colorful Parrotfish can change gender as well as skin shade!

Parrotfish are tropical creatures and are famous for their bright color and size. They have been blessed with an array of unique characters and shades. They have a remarkable eating pattern that mostly consists of algae. This algae is majorly extracted from coral reefs, which is further grinded with their tightly packed teeth. A single Parrotfish can release up to 90kg of sand that is excreted in the form of undigested coral. Color patterns can differ from time to time that leads to a lot of confusion in terms of recognition. But, the most striking trait is their ability to change gender in their lifetime.

Parrot Fish

The Fish:

Parrotfish belong to the family (Scaridae) and consist of 90 different species. They may measure up to 30–50 centimeters (12–20 in) in length, while a few others may touch 1 meter (3.3 ft). One can easily spot them in tropical and subtropical oceans. The arrangement of their tightly-packed teeth results in a parrot-like beak, which is evident from their name. They eat algae from coral reefs and excrete sand. The most astonishing aspect being their ability to change gender. The females (at initial stage) take the shape of a male later, which is quite astounding. Parrotfish changes a lot of colors during its lifespan, which has been termed as polychromatism. They make good use of homocercal tail fins and pectoral fins while moving around, but it’s the tail that makes them reach a good speed.

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Parrot Fish

Parrot Fish change its shape, color, and even gender during its life.

Interesting characteristics:

• Eggs released by Parrotfish become an important fraction of plankton. They are buoyant in nature and keep floating on the surface of water. The eggs of these pelagic spawners stay in the coral till the time they don’t get hatched.

• Parrotfish divide themselves into several groups, which are based on size. Female species often get into clashes that are controlled by a male, who tries to defend all challenges thrown in front of him.

• Adults can be distinguished from juveniles because of their color pattern. Juveniles can easily change their body shade just to look like other species.

• There are a few female species that don’t alter their sex. They are called Secondary Gonochorist and Mediterranean Parrotfish (S. cretense) is a fine example. But, there are few who do change their sex before they become an adult. On the contrary, a reproducing female will never do so.

• The sole species that sticks to its sex is the marbled Parrotfish (Leptoscarus vaigiensis).

• A few species look different at different stages, while others don’t change their appearance. The preliminary phase varies

  between dull red, grey or brown, while they finally get hints of blue or green. This is coupled with pink or yellow really bright patches.

• They feed on a variety of things and cannot be tagged as vegetarians. They are responsible for the creation as well as distribution of coral, which form an important part of reef biome.

• Parrotfish excrete sand and the quantity can touch 90kg (from one parrotfish). They eat coral rocks with the help of pharyngeal teeth. Teeth keep growing throughout their life and old ones get replaced with new, which wear out because of eating.

• Parrotfish reside depending on the depth of the coral. They are mostly found 3-50 meters below the water surface.

Facts About Parrot Fish