Bluelip Parrotfish

Cryptotomus roseus

The Bluelip Parrotfish, identified by its olivaceous back with small pink dots and a salmon stripe along the side, is a small reef fish reaching up to 13 cm in length. It features a row of green dots along the salmon stripe and a light green body below with salmon markings on the scales. Its jaw teeth are fused only at the bases, and it lacks a membranous flap on the anterior nostril, distinguishing it from similar species. This fish inhabits the Western Atlantic, from Bermuda and southern Florida to Brazil, and possibly Ascension Island. It is typically found in seagrass beds and weedy areas with sand, within a depth range of up to 60 meters, though most occurrences are shallower than 40 meters. The Bluelip Parrotfish feeds primarily on seagrasses and is known to bury itself in the sand to sleep within a mucus tube. As a protogynous hermaphrodite, the Bluelip Parrotfish undergoes sex change at around 5.75 cm in length and forms leks during breeding. Listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, this species poses no threat to humans and is involved in commercial fisheries and aquariums.