Biology ⁶

Inhabits coral reefs with clear water (Ref. 13628). Young may be found in seagrass beds and other heavily vegetated bottoms. Feeds mainly on soft algae, but has been observed to graze on live corals like, Montastraea annularis (Ref. 6496). Produces a significant amount of sediment through bioerosion using its strong beak-like jaws and constantly re-growing teeth (Ref. 6485). Protogynous; strictly diurnal, spends the night sleeping on the bottom (Ref. 5221). Found singly or small in small groups.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) John E. Randall, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://d1iraxgbwuhpbw.cloudfront.net/images/species/spvir_f0.jpg
2. (c) Marcus Merrin, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Marcus Merrin
3. (c) Flickr, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7269/7688407494_b22697a635_o.jpg
4. (c) 2001 California Academy of Sciences, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=30983&one=T
5. (c) Flickr, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8485/8180190416_349ee0d097_o.jpg
6. (c) FishBase, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://eol.org/data_objects/20915000

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• Animal Diversity Web
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• FishBase
• FishSource
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• NatureServe Explorer 2.0
• VertNet
• World Register of Marine Species

Range Map

(c) Barcode of Life Data Systems, some rights reserved (CC-BY)

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