Spanish hogfish
Bodianus rufus
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Description:
Body elongated in shape with a relatively long snout. Forehalf of dorsal fin serrated. Upper forebody purple, belly and tail yellow-gold. Purple may become reddish and large adults become mottled purplish yellow (B. rufus; B. rufus 2). Juvenile have a purple head and forebody, as they mature, the purple area becomes restricted to the upper forebody.
Size up to 40 cm.
Habitat:
Constantly swim above reefs, down to 70 m. Juveniles can be observed in shallow water, where they remove parasites and debris from the body of larger fish.
Distribution:
Common to occasional south Florida, Bahamas and Caribbean.