New Zealand spotty
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| Notolabrus celidotus (Bloch & Schneider, 1801) |
The New Zealand spotty, Notolabrus celidotus, is a wrasse of the genus Notolabrus, found all around New Zealand to depths of about 10 m, in a great variety of habitats. Its length is between 15 and 25 cm, and it is the most common reef fish found in New Zealand.
The New Zealand spotty is grey-blue or yellow-brown with a series of blue lines on the head and a large black spot in the centre of each flank, from which it gets its common name. Using its sharp canine teeth, typical of wrasses, it feeds upon a large range of marine life - crabs, amphipods, shrimps, barnacles, molluscs, and worms.
Like most wrasses this species is a protogynous hermaphrodite - each individual begins life as a female and later changes sex to become a male. The larvae drift in the plankton for about 2 months before settling as tiny juveniles 15 to 20 mm long, in the fronds of the common kelp Ecklonia radiata. These exclusively female young fish grow rapidly and reach maturity in September when about 12 centimetres long. After 1 or 2 years they change sex to become males.
New Zealand spotties are commonly caught by young anglers off piers and rocks.
[edit] References
- Notolabrus celidotus (TSN 614004). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Accessed on 11 March 2006.
- "Notolabrus celidotus". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. January 2006 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2006.
- Tony Ayling & Geoffrey Cox, Collins Guide to the Sea Fishes of New Zealand, (William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1982) ISBN 0-00-216987-8
