Scarus vetula, Queen parrotfish : fisheries, aquarium

Scarus vetula Bloch & Schneider, 1801

Queen parrotfish
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Scarus vetula   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Scarus vetula (Queen parrotfish)
Scarus vetula
Picture by Patzner, R.

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Eupercaria/misc (Various families in series Eupercaria) > Labridae (Wrasses) > Scarinae
Etymology: Scarus: Greek, skaros = a fish described by anciente writers as a parrot fish; 1601 (Ref. 45335).
More on authors: Bloch & Schneider.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; reef-associated; depth range 3 - 25 m (Ref. 9710). Tropical; 33°N - 8°N, 98°W - 59°W

Distribution Territories | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Western Central Atlantic: Bermuda, Florida (USA), and Bahamas to northern South America; throughout the Caribbean Sea.

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 61.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 7251); common length : 32.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 3802)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 9; Dorsal soft rays (total): 10; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 9. Young adults of both sexes dark gray overall, with broad white stripe slightly below mid-side. Super males have upper pectoral fin margin and upper and lower margins of tail dusky with submarginal band of brownish orange (Ref. 26938).
Body shape (shape guide): fusiform / normal.

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Inhabits coral reefs and adjacent habitats. Feeds on algae scraped from rocks or dead coral. Sleeps in a mucus cocoon (Ref. 9710). Often seen in groups of one super male with several young adults, most of which are probably females (Ref. 26938). A protogynous hermaphrodite (Ref. 55367).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Forms permanent harem groups composed of a single male and several smaller females (Ref. 55367). A monandric species (Ref. 55367). Length at sex change = 25.2 cm TL (Ref. 55367).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : Westneat, Mark | Collaborators

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)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 15 September 2009

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Reports of ciguatera poisoning (Ref. 30911)





Human uses

Fisheries: minor commercial; aquarium: commercial
FAO - Publication: search | FishSource |

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Trophic ecology
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Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | National databases | OneZoom | Open Tree of Life | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | Public aquariums | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | TreeBase | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search |