Teleostei (teleosts) >
Eupercaria/misc (Various families in series Eupercaria) >
Labridae (Wrasses) > Scarinae
Etymology: Sparisoma: Latin, sparus = a fish with a golden head + Greek, soma = body (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Poey.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; reef-associated; depth range 20 - 55 m (Ref. 9710). Tropical; 32°N -
Western Atlantic: Bermuda, southern Florida (USA), and Bahamas to northern South America.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 25.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 26340)
Dorsal spines (total): 9; Dorsal soft rays (total): 10; Anal spines: 2; Anal soft rays: 9. Initial phase olive-brown, finely mottled with pale pink, with whitish stripes (most evident on ventral half of body); one changeable color phase with a broad dark stripe from snout, enclosing eye, and passing along upper side; terminal males with a broad band of olive or red on upper side, finely flecked with other colors, the ventral half with iridescent light blue-green and wavy orange stripes; a bright green blotch as large as eye on shoulder region behind upper end of gill opening, sometimes containing one or two deep blue spots (Ref. 13442).
Body shape (shape guide): fusiform / normal.
Inhabits deep rocky and coral reefs with steep walls (Ref. 9710). Generally seen in seagrass beds or on reefs with thick algal cover (Ref. 13442). A protogynous hermaphrodite (Ref. 55367).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
A monandric species (Ref. 55367). Forms harem groups composed of a single male and several smaller females (Ref. 55398). Length at sex change = 5.5 cm TL (Ref. 55367).
Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray, 1986. A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p. (Ref. 7251)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2025-2)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: commercial; aquarium: commercial
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