Scarus fuscopurpureus, common name purple-brown parrotfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish. This species of parrotfish occurs in the western Indian Ocean, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Persian Gulf.
Taxonomy Scarus fuscopurpureus was first formally described as Pseudoscarus forskalii fuscopurpureus in 1871 by the German physician and zoologist Carl Benjamin Klunzinger (1834-1914), with the type locality given as Al-Qusair, Red Sea Governorate, Egypt.
Distribution Countries in which this species can be found include Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Yemen, Israel, Jordan, Iran, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Sudan.
Description Terminal phase males may typically range from . Colors of these fishes depend on sexes and stage of growth. The dorsal, anal, and caudal fins are deep brown and purple. Initial phase fish show drab purple or brown colouration with light bands, with reddish edges of scales and a truncate to emarginated caudal fin. Terminal phase fish often have a pale (pink or yellow) vertical band on the side, below the soft dorsal, as well as a yellow-edged lunate tail.Richard Field Reef Fishes of OmanKent E. Carpenter Living Marine Resources of Kuwait, Eastern Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, etc.
Habitat
This reef-associated species inhabits shallow water, at a depth of , often over sand with coral heads and abundant vegetation.
Reproduction Scarus fuscopurpureus is oviparous and the male and female form pairs for spawning. They can be usually found in pairs or small groups. Like many but not all other species of parrotfish, the purple-brown parrotfish also exhibits different colour phases based on sex and life stage.
Behavior S. fuscopurpureus exhibits diel vertical patterns in which they stay at greater depths at night to sleep, while staying in shallower waters during the day to feed.
Feeding S. fuscopurpureus, like other parrotfishes, use their strong jaws and teeth to rasp at algae on coral. Bibliography
References
External links
Saltcorner My Reef Guide