Bicolour parrotfish
Cetoscarus bicolor
Redfin parrotfish
Sparisoma rubripinne
About
The redfin parrotfish changes both sex and colour over its life, starting out drab and ending up a striking blue-green. It grows to almost 48 cm long on Caribbean reefs and seagrass beds.
Also known as: roughscale kwob, roughscale parrot, red fin parrot fish, yellowtail parrotfish, roughscale parrot, roughscale kwob, redfin parrot, yellowtail parrot, yellowtail parrotfish
- Length
- 47.8 cm
- Depth
- up to 15 m
How to tell it apart
Many parrotfish share this drab-to-blue-green colour change, making single fish hard to place. On the paler phase, check for the bright yellow tail base; on blue-green males, look instead for the black spot at the base of the pectoral fin.
Appearance
Young fish and females are light grayish-brown, almost white underneath, with dark and pale bars crossing the chin. Their tail base and tail fin are bright yellow, and their anal and pelvic fins are red. Older males that have changed sex turn dull blue-green, with a large black spot at the base of the pectoral fin and pale outer pectoral tips.
Did you know?
Young and drab-phase redfin parrotfish can quickly switch to a mottled, blotchy pattern the moment they settle onto the seabed, helping them blend into the bottom.
Log it in Into the Blue
Describe what you saw and we name it, then keep every species you find in your Oceandex.
