Marbled parrotfish
| Marbled parrotfish | |
|---|---|
.gif) | |
| Drawing by Dr Tony Ayling | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Perciformes |
| Family: | Scaridae |
| Genus: | Leptoscarus Swainson, 1839 |
| Species: | L. vaigiensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Leptoscarus vaigiensis (Quoy & Gaimard, 1824) | |
The marbled parrotfish or seagrass parrotfish (Leptoscarus vaigiensis) is a species of parrotfish, the only member of the genus Leptoscarus. It is found in coastal regions with seagrass, ranging from the Red Sea in west to Easter Island in east, and Japan in north to New Zealand and South Africa in south.[1] Its distribution is largely antiequatorial (i.e., found in both the Southern and Northern Hemispheres, but rare or absent near the Equator). It reaches a maximum length of 35 cm (14 in) and both genders are brownish and greenish.[1] Uniquely among parrotfish, females never change sex to males.[2]
_et_femelles.jpg)
A group of marbled parrotfish. The males can be distinguished by their white lateral bands.
References
- 1 2 Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2010). "Leptoscarus vaigiensis" in FishBase. March 2010 version.
- ↑ Lieske, E., & R. Myers (1999). Coral Reef Fishes. 2nd edition. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-00481-1
- 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
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