Marbled Parrotfish, Leptoscarus vaigiensis (Quoy & Gaimard 1824)


Other Names: Blue-spotted Parrotfish, Marbled Parrot-fish, Slender Parrotfish

A Marbled Parrotfish, Leptoscarus vaigiensis, at Puerto Galera, Philippines. Source: Paddy Ryan / http://www.ryanphotographic.com/. License: All rights reserved


Cite this page as:
Dianne J. Bray, Leptoscarus vaigiensis in Fishes of Australia, accessed 29 Mar 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/398

Marbled Parrotfish, Leptoscarus vaigiensis (Quoy & Gaimard 1824)

More Info


Distribution

Recorded in Australia from Rottnest Island, WA, to the Northern Territory, and from the northern Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, to Cronulla, Sydney, NSW; also at Cocos (Keeling) Island and Lord Howe Island. Occurs in the Indo-Pacific from the northern Red Sea and South Africa to Easter Island in the Central Pacific, north to southern Japan, south to the Poor Knight's Island in New Zealand and Rottnest Island in Australia. Also in the SE Atlantic. 

Although widespread in the Indo-Pacific region, the Marbled Parrotfish is relatively rare in most parts of its range.

Inhabits seagrass beds and algal-covered reef areas in sheltered bays, harbours and lagoons.

Biology

Marbled Parrotfish usually occur in small groups. Unlike other parrotfishes, males and females look very similar and do not change sex. Larvae of this species is associated with drifting algae. It feeds on seagrasses and algae 

Species Citation

Scarus vaigiensis Quoy & Gaimard, 1824, Voyage autour du Monde 1: 288. Type locality: Waigeo (as Vaigiou), Indonesia.

Author

Dianne J. Bray

Resources

Australian Faunal Directory

Marbled Parrotfish, Leptoscarus vaigiensis (Quoy & Gaimard 1824)

References


Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Western Australian Museum. 292 pp.

Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp.

Allen, G.R. & Smith-Vaniz, W.F. 1994. Fishes of Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Atoll Research Bulletin 412: 1-21

Allen, G.R. & R. Swainston. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Western Australian Museum. 201 pp.

Bellwood, D.R. 1994. A phylogenetic study of the parrotfishes family Scaridae (Pisces: Labroidei), with a revision of genera. Records of the Australian Museum, Supplement 20: 1-86.

Bellwood, D.R. 2001. Scaridae. pp. 3468-3492 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, T.H. (eds) The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 6 pp. 3381-4218.

Bellwood, D.R. & J.H. Choat. 1989. A description of the juvenile phase colour patterns of 24 parrotfish species (family Scaridae) from the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Records of the Australian Museum. 41: 1-41.

Bruce, R.W. & Randall, J.E. 1985. A revision of the Indo-West Pacific parrotfish genera Calotomus and Leptoscarus (Scaridae: Sparisomatinae). Indo-Pacific Fishes 5: 32.

Choat, J.H., Clements, K.D., Rocha, L.A., Russell, B., Myers, R., Lazuardi, M.E., Muljadi, A., Pardede, S. & Rahardjo, P. 2012. Leptoscarus vaigiensis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.2. . Downloaded on 30 July 2014.

Choat, J.H. & J.E. Randall. 1986. A Review of the Parrotfishes (Family Scaridae) of the Great Barrier Reef of Australia with Description of a New Species. Records of the Australian Museum 38: 175-228.

Comeros-Raynal, M.T., Choat, J.H., Polidoro, B., Clements, K.D., Abesamis, R., Craig, M.T., Lazuardi, M.E., McIlwain, J., Muljadi, A., Myers, R.F., et al. 2012. The likelihood of extinction of iconic and dominant components of coral reefs: the parrotfishes and surgeonfishes. PLoS ONE http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0039825.

Francis, M. 1993. Checklist of the coastal fishes of Lord Howe, Norfolk, and Kermadec Islands, southwest Pacific Ocean. Pacific Science 47(2): 136-170 figs 1-2


Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. 180 pp.

Hutchins, J.B. & Thompson, M. 1983. The Marine and Estuarine Fishes of South-western Australia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 103 pp. 345 figs.


Kuiter, R.H. 1993. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 437 pp.

Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. 437 pp.

Kuiter, R.H. & Tonozuka, T. 2001. Pictorial guide to Indonesian reef fishes. Part 2. Fusiliers - Dragonets, Caesionidae - Callionymidae. Zoonetics, Australia.

Larson, H.K., Williams, R.S. & Hammer, M.P. 2013. An annotated checklist of the fishes of the Northern Territory, Australia. Zootaxa 3696(1): 1-293.


Lim, I.E., Wilson, S.K., Holmes, T.H., Noble, M.M. & Fulton, C.J. 2016. Specialization within a shifting habitat mosaic underpins the seasonal abundance of a tropical fish. Ecosphere 7(2):e01212. 10.1002/ecs2.1212 PDF Open access

Ohta, I. & Tachihara, K. 2004. Larval development and food habits of the marbled parrotfish, Leptoscarus vaigiensis, associated with drifting algae. Ichthyological Research 51: 63-69.

Quoy, J.R.C. & Gaimard, J.P. 1824. Chapter 8. Poissons. 183-328 pls 43-65 in Freycinet, L.C.D. de (ed.) Voyage autour du Monde, entrepris par ordre du Roi, exécuté sur les corvettes de S.M. Uranie et la Physicienne, pendant les années 1817, 1818, 1819 et 1820. Paris : Pillet Aîné Vol. 1 712 pp. 96 pls.


Randall, J.E. 2005. Reef and shore fishes of the South Pacific. New Caledonia to Tahiti and the Pitcairn Islands. Honolulu : University of Hawaii Press 707 pp.

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R.C. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Crawford House Press. 557 pp.

Westneat, M.W. & Alfaro, M.E. 2005. Phylogenetic relationships and evolutionary history of the reef fish family Labridae. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 36: 370–390.

Quick Facts


CAAB Code:37386009

Conservation:IUCN Least Concern

Depth:0-50 m

Habitat:Reef associated, seagrass

Max Size:38 cm TL

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Species Maps

CAAB distribution map