| Rainbow parrotfish | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Labriformes |
| Family: | Labridae |
| Genus: | Scarus |
| Species: | S. guacamaia |
| Binomial name | |
| Scarus guacamaia Cuvier, 1829 | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
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Therainbow parrotfish (Scarus guacamaia) is a species offish in the familyScaridae.
S. guacamaia is the second largest species of parrotfish after thehumphead parrotfish,[3] and the largest parrotfish in theAtlantic, reaching 1.2 m (3.9 ft) in length, 20 kg in weight and a maximum age of 16 years. It has a greenish-brown overall colouration; the fins are dull orange with tongues of green. Its dental plates are blue-green. Sexes appear alike.[2]
It is most closely related to two other large-bodied parrotfish species,S. coelestinus andS. trispinosus.[4]
The rainbow parrotfish has a relatively wide distribution in the western Atlantic, and can be found from Bermuda throughSouth Florida, the Bahamas and the Caribbean to Venezuela. It inhabitscoral reefs,mangroves andsea grass beds in shallow waters, at depths of 3–25 m.[1][2]
S. guacamaia is primarily adetritivore, feeding on detritus, bacterial colonies andmeiofauna but also taking sponges. Young fish appear to recruit mostly to mangroves.[1]
S. guacamaia was formerly classified asvulnerable due tooverfishing andhabitat loss, but because the presently available data do not allow an estimate of the population decline, it is now considerednear threatened by theIUCN. It is relatively rare in most of its range, but more common in Bermuda. The rainbow parrotfish is widely harvested in subsistence fisheries in many parts of the Caribbean.[1]
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