European parrotfish

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European parrotfish
Initial phase

Initial phase

Systematics
Perch relatives (Percomorphaceae)
Order : Labriformes
Family : Wrasse (Labridae)
Subfamily : Parrotfish (Scarinae)
Genre : Sparisoma
Type : European parrotfish
Scientific name
Sparisoma cretense
( Linnaeus , 1758)

The European parrotfish ( Sparisoma cretense ) was the only species of parrotfish represented in the Mediterranean until the blue- banded parrotfish ( Scarus ghobban ) immigrated to the eastern Mediterranean through the Suez Canal.

male

distribution

Sparisoma cretense is native to the eastern Atlantic from Portugal to Senegal. This distribution area includes the Canaries, Azores, Madeira and Porto Santo, as well as the Cape Verde Islands. In the Mediterranean, the European parrotfish is found mainly in the western and central Mediterranean. The main distribution area includes the North African coast, Malta, Sicily, Italy and Spain with the Balearic Islands. In the eastern Mediterranean and the Adriatic Sea, this species is not so common.

Habitat and behavior

Sparisoma cretense is mostly found in shallow waters near rocky coasts. Although the European parrotfish can often be observed at depths of 10 to 20 m, it can also be found occasionally at a depth of up to 50 m. The European parrotfish is a gregarious fish that usually occurs in groups. It can often be seen that Sparisoma cretense also swims in groups with other fish. The animals are constantly busy grazing the rocks and crevices on the coast. They excrete the unusable remains of what is eaten immediately afterwards.

biology

The European parrotfish grows to a maximum of 50 cm long, but the body length normally observed is 30 cm. Mating takes place between July and September. It has already been claimed that the European parrotfish, unlike its relatives, are not hermaphrodites . However, there are also histological and demographic data that suggest that a sex change also takes place in this species. The food mainly consists of algae and invertebrates . The female and male fish are clearly different in color. The males are more gray or purple-brownish and simply colored, while the female parrotfish have a strong dark red color with gray areas behind the head and a yellow eye stripe. What is particularly interesting is that this species has two different strategies in terms of social behavior. Group life is predominantly found in smaller-sized animals, while territoriality predominates in large animals. Males mature earlier and also become territorial earlier than females. The best areas are occupied by large males. Larger males have their territories at greater depths and in more exposed places, fish living in groups occupy shallower, more protected places. However, the areas regularly mix and overlap, especially during the reproductive period in summer. Obviously, it is important for both groups of fish that the spawning grounds are optimally selected for successful reproduction.

Fishing and endangerment

Sparisoma cretense is rated as rather insignificant by restaurants and consumers . For this reason, the European parrotfish is not targeted. Due to the low fishing quota, the species is classified by the IUCN as least concern (not endangered). Rather, the red list for threatened animal species assumes that the climate-related warming of the seas and oceans, which is to be expected, will contribute to the further spread of the species.

Aquaristics

Due to the maximum size of 50 cm and the special way of life, the European parrotfish is only suitable for very large display tanks. The species thus plays a subordinate role in saltwater aquariums.

Synonyms

  • Calliodon rubiginosus (Valenciennes, 1840)
  • Euscarus cretensis (Linnaeus, 1758)
  • Labrus cretensis Linnaeus, 1758
  • Labrus xantherythrus Rafinesque, 1810
  • Scarus canariensis Valenciennes, 1838
  • Scarus cretensis (Linnaeus, 1758)
  • Scarus mutabilis Lowe, 1838
  • Scarus rubiginoides Guichenot, 1865
  • Scarus rubiginosus Valenciennes, 1840
  • Scarus siculus Cocco, 1846
  • Sparidosoma cretense (Linnaeus, 1758)

literature

  • Sea Fishes and Invertebrates of the Maltese Islands and the Mediterranean Sea, Lawson Wood, 2002
  • The Fish Around Malta, Guido G. Lanfranco, 1993
  • The Dive Sites of Malta, Comino and Gozo, Lawson and Lesley Wood, 1999

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Wirtz, P. (2012): Two new parrotfish species in the Northeast Atlantic. DATZ , 65 (3): 59-61.
  2. ↑ European Parrotfish on Fishbase.org (English)
  3. ↑ Lawsond Wood, Sea Fishes And Invertebrates Of The Maltese Islands and The Mediterranean Sea, 112
  4. ↑ Afonso, P., Morato, T. & Serr˜ao Santos, R. (2008): Spatial patterns in reproductive traits of the temperate parrotfish Sparisoma cretense . Fisheries Research , 90: 92-99
  5. ↑ de Girolamo, M., Scaggiante, M. & Rasotto, MB (1999): Social organization and sexual pattern in the Mediterranean parrotfish Sparisoma cretense (Teleostei: Scaridae). Marine Biology , 135 (2): 353-360.
  6. ↑ Guido G. Lanfranco, The Fish around Malta, page 43, plate 191
  7. ↑ a b https://apiv3.iucnredlist.org/api/v3/taxonredirect/190710
  8. ↑ http://www.meerwasser-lexikon.de/tiere/3793_Sparisoma_cretense.htm

Web links

Commons : Sparisoma cretense  - collection of images, videos and audio files