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Pacific Creolefish
Cephalopholis colonus
Cephalopholis colonus (the Pacific creolefish) is a species of grouper found in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. They are typically found in small aggregations well above reefs, but will retreat to the reef at the approach of danger. They form large midwater schools while feeding on plankton. They occur up to a depth of 100 m (330 ft). They feed mainly on small planktonic animals that are picked individually from the water, made possible by their shortened snout which
From the article Cephalopholis colonus on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
Description
Pacific creolefish grow up to 38 centimetres (15 in) in length (TL), although they are most commonly found at a length of 30–32 centimetres (12–13 in). Males and females are approximately the same size. There are 37–44 gill rakers. The dorsal fin has 9 spines and 18–21 rays, the anal fin has 3 spines and 9–11 rays, and the pectoral fin has 19–23 rays. The caudal fin is deeply forked. The colouration is reddish or reddish grey, with 4–5 bright spots across the body of the fish. Juveniles are pinkish yellow.
Range & habitat
The Pacific creolefish occurs in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, from as far north as the Gulf of California to as far south as Peru. This includes the Revillagigedo, Galapagos, Clipperton, Cocos Island, and Malpelo islands.
Wikipedia: “Distribution”
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
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In the stacks
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Every page naming Cephalopholis colonus in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 1439800.