[MoED] Favourite Fish - Thursday Edition

Day 4,614, 18:30 Published in United Kingdom United Kingdom by AMD.

Found this on Google

Mornin' all.

It would appear that Chaz got drunk at the helm of the ship again in his infinite wisdom, our lord and saviour Chaz has decided to name me the unofficial Minister of the Fisheries for the month ahead. I have a few plans for some educational articles and other such nonsense this month, but I'd like to start it out strong this month.

So Thursday 9th July 2020's favourite fish of the day is;

The Parrotfish


Look at this magnificent b@stard


The first thing wikipedia tells me about this fish is not to confuse it with the Parrot cichlid. I have no idea what a Cichlid is. So google that, I'm here today to talk about the Parrotfish.

Parrotfish is actually the term for a group of about 95 fish, who are all considered a family. Seems fishy to me. This however does make the Parrotfish the largest species in the Indo-Pacific region.

For those of you without a degree in colouring things in, this is the Indo-Pacific region.


You can usually find these magnificent fish in coral reefs, rocky coasts and in sea beds.

They are named for the dentition, which is distinct from other fish. I however, cannot confirm this for myself as I have no clue what a dentition is. Something to do with teeth? Their teeth are arranged in a tightly packed mosaic on the external surface of their jaw bones, which forms a parrot like beak, hence the name, Parrotfish.

These bad boys reach between 12 and 20 inches in length. A trait they have in common with Cpt Chazbeard.
Also, much like Cpt Chazbeard, they secrete a cocoon of mucus at night, just before they go to sleep. This cocoon, in the exact same fashion as Cpt Chazbeard, forms a protective layer that hides its scent from potential predators.


Chaz in his protective cocoon.

It eats algae and various types of sponges. Its teeth allow it to function very well. Apparently there different groups of Parrotfish known as; excavators, scrapers, and browsers. Excavators have larger, stronger jaws that can gouge the substrate,leaving visible scars on the surface.Scrapers have less powerful jaws that can but infrequently do leave visible scraping scars on the substrate. Some of these may also feed on sand instead of hard surfaces. Browsers mainly feed on seagrasses and their epiphytes.

I do not know what a substrate is.


The strong beak of Bolbometopon muricatum is able to grind the sturdiest corals.

The development of parrotfishes is complex and accompanied by a series of changes in sex and colour (polychromatism). Most species are sequential hermaphrodites, starting as females (known as the initial phase) and then changing to males (the terminal phase).

Most tropical species form large schools when feeding and these are often grouped by size. Harems of several females presided over by a single male are normal in most species, with the males vigorously defending their position from any challenge. This is another similarity that our current president has with Parrotfish.



That has been all today on Parrotfish.

In the meantime why not consider joining our eUK Telegram Server for some good conversation.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk. I will take suggestions for future fish.

Drop a comment below, what is your favourite fish?!
If I like it, I'll send some presents your way.

o7