Stoplight parrotfish
| Stoplight parrotfish | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Male (terminal phase) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Perciformes |
| Family: | Scaridae |
| Genus: | Sparisoma |
| Species: | S. viride |
| Binomial name | |
| Sparisoma viride | |
The stoplight parrotfish (Sparisoma viride) is a sex-changing fish inhabiting coral reefs in Florida, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, Bermuda and as far south as Brazil.[1] Its typical length is between 1 and 1.5 ft (30 and 46 cm), but it can reach 2 ft (61 cm) at times. It is normally found during the day at depths between 15 and 80 ft (4.6 and 24.4 m).[1]
The colors of the stoplight parrotfish in the initial phase, when it could be either a male or a female, are dramatically different from those in the terminal phase, when it is definitely a male. In the initial phase, the stoplight parrotfish can rapidly change the color of the scales on its underside from red to white.[citation needed]
The common name, stoplight, comes from the marked yellow spot near the pectoral fin, which is clearly visible only in specimens in the terminal phase.