| Main Ref. | Smith, C.L., 1978 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Distribution |
|
||||
| Remarks | Occurs from the shoreline to at least 90 m depth. Usually close to caves (Ref. 9710). The juveniles are common in seagrass beds, feeding mainly on crustaceans; adults common in shallow coral reefs (Ref. 5222). Observed hiding among the leaves of the turtle grass Thalassia testudinium, presumably in wait of prey; the coloration may serve primarily to conceal it from preys rather than from predators (Ref. 5230). Carnivore (Ref. 57616). Pelagic recruits feeding habits ranged from filter feeding to particulate feeding and piscivory (Ref. 59316). Their prey ranged from dinoflagellates to fish larvae, >0.9 cm SL (Ref. 59316). |
| Substrate | |
|---|---|
| Substrate Ref. | |
| Special habitats | Beds: sea grass; Coral Reefs; |
| Special habitats Ref. |
| Ref. | |
|---|---|
| Associations | |
| Associated with | Cleaned by goby (Gobiosoma evelynae and others) and hogfish (Bodianus rufus) as observed on the coral reefs in Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles (Ref. 36810). |
| Association remarks | |
| Parasitism |
| Feeding type | mainly animals (troph. 2.8 and up) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feeding type ref | Randall, J.E., 1965 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Feeding habit | hunting macrofauna (predator) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Feeding habit ref | Randall, J.E., 1965 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Trophic level(s) |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||