Scarus coeruleus
Blue Parrotfish
Collection Details
Specimens
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Perciformes (Perciformes, Also Called the Acanthopteri)
Scaridae (Parrotfishes)
Scarus
Scarus coeruleus (Blue Parrotfish)
Description
This species account was compiled from
Composite (multiple sources) (McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. University of Texas Press, Austin.)
and processed using AI-assisted text extraction.
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Characters
Jaw teeth fused to form beaklike plates, two scales in third row on cheek, distinct hump on forehead of large juveniles and adults. Dorsal and ventral profiles rounded. Snout moderately steep in small specimens, very steep in large specimens. Nares close set, anterior naris with short flap on posterior margin. Tooth plate of upper jaw slightly overlaps that of lower jaw. Gill rakers on first arch number 31 to 50. Measurements (% SL): head length 33%–37%, snout length 10%–13%, eye diameter 5%–6%, upper jaw length 6%–7%, pectoral fin length 21%–25%, body depth 33%–38%. Pectoral fin with 15 rays. Caudal fin slightly convex in juveniles, double emarginate in adults, with upper and lower lobes very long in large specimens. Body, much of head, and bases of dorsal, anal, and caudal fins covered with scales. Cheek with three rows of scales. Predorsal midrow scales number six.
Color in life light to dark blue, with basal part of scales salmon. Terminal males deep blue or greenish blue, with broad dark gray region on cheek. Small juveniles striped and have yellow heads to adulthood.
Distribution
Western Atlantic from Maryland and Bermuda to Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico, the Bahamas, and the Greater and Lesser Antilles.
In the Gulf of Mexico it occurs off Florida and Veracruz.
Habitat Associations
Coral reefs in shallow water
Biology
Food consists of benthic algae
Maximum known size is 900 mm TL
Inhabits coral reefs. Juveniles found on Thalassia beds (Ref. 13628). Feeds on benthic plants and small organisms in the sand (Ref. 5521). Forms large spawning aggregations (Ref. 9710).
Reproductive mode: protogyny; fertilization: external; mating system: monogamy; nonguarders (open water/substratum egg scatterers); parental care: none. Oviparous, distinct pairing during breeding (Ref. 205).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2009-09-17. Resilience: Medium (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: minor commercial; gamefish; aquarium: commercial.
References
Longley and Hildebrand 1941 (as S. caeruleus)
Schultz 1958a
Böhlke and Chaplin 1968
Randall 1968a
Randall 1996
Robins and Ray 1986
Schaldach et al. 1997
Smith 1997
Smith-Vaniz et al. 1999
Westneat 2002b
Breder, C.M. and D.E. Rosen (1966) Modes of reproduction in fishes. T.F.H. Publications, Neptune City, New Jersey. 941 p.
Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray (1986) A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p.
Lieske, E. and R. Myers (1994) Collins Pocket Guide. Coral reef fishes. Indo-Pacific & Caribbean including the Red Sea. Haper Collins Publishers, 400 p.
Randall, J.E. (1996) Caribbean reef fishes. Third Edition - revised and enlarged. T.F.H. Publications, Inc. Ltd., Hong Kong. 3nd ed. 368 p.
Cervigón, F. (1994) Los peces marinos de Venezuela. Volume 3. Fundación Científica Los Roques, Caracas,Venezuela. 295 p.
García-Cagide, A., R. Claro and B.V. Koshelev (1994) Reproducción. p. 187-262. In R. Claro (ed.) Ecología de los peces marinos de Cuba. Inst. Oceanol. Acad. Cienc. Cuba. and Cen. Invest. Quintana Roo (CIQRO) México.
Smith, C.L. (1997) National Audubon Society field guide to tropical marine fishes of the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, Florida, the Bahamas, and Bermuda. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York. 720 p.
Parenti, P. and J.E. Randall (2000) An annotated checklist of the species of the labroid fish families Labridae and Scaridae. Ichthyol. Bull. J.L.B. Smith Inst. Ichthyol. (68):1-97.
Comments On Scarus coeruleus