Marine Wildlife Encyclopedia
Green Humphead Parrotfish Bolbometopon muricatum
Parrotfish are aptly named—not only are they brightly colored, but their teeth are fused together to form a parrotlike beak. The green humphead parrotfish is much larger than most of its relatives. It has a huge crest-shaped hump on its head, a greenish body, large scales, and a single long dorsal fin. The green humphead parrotfish is a destructive fish that feeds by crunching up live coral, and it often breaks up the coral with its head. However, on the positive side, the coral sand the green humphead perrotfish defecates after a meal helps to consolidate the reef and build up patches of sand.
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- Order Perciformes
- Length Up to 4 ft (1.3 m)
- Weight Up to 100 lb (45 kg)
- Depth 3–100 ft (1–30 m)
- Distribution Tropical reefs in Red Sea, Indian Ocean, and southwestern Pacific
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