Fish+ID+and+Behavior


 * Damselfish: Hyperactive, lively **
 * A great amount of fish of this specie spend a hefty amount of time protecting or shielding algae patches from invaders. Once they sense invasion from other fishes they react defensively by dashing back and forth with erect fins. Consequently these fishes have been known to attack divers, however when invading for long periods of time. Damselfishes only come up or rise a bit in order to eat since they always want to stay close to their shelter. There were three main species of damselfish that we could observe in Curacao which were the bicolor damselfish, the yellowtail damselfish, and the sergeant major. **
 * -Bicolor Damselfish: Live in reefs and in low profile reef tops. They feed themselves by plucking zooplankton from the currents and in the water column. One thing you should be aware of is that the males are highly aggressive within their territory when they are guarding an egg. What they would do if fish invaders come near their territory, is they chase them away. Their reaction towards divers is to drop to the seafloor and hide. **
 * -Yellowtail Damselfish: Their habitat is reef tops and unlike bicolor damselfish, yellowtail damselfish are not aggressive regarding their territory. Yellowtail damselfish are usually approachable and they are not scared of divers or other fishes. Juvenile are found in areas of fire corals and are cautious so they usually hide in the fire corals. **
 * -Sergeant Major: Usually swim in mid-water level and in loose masses. They are not afraid of fishes nor divers and sometimes they might even go close to divers. They also chase invaders or intruders away while they are in the stage of guarding their egg. **


 * Blue Chromis: They feed themselves above low reef structures and form small groups in order to be more cautious so if an invader comes, they move down towards the seafloor to hide. **
 * Brown Chromis:If approached very closely they move towards the seafloor just like the blue chromis but the difference is that they feed high above outer reef slopes. Typically form small or large groups or aggregations. **
 * Sunshine: They tend to form small groups close to recesses near the bottom around a coral head and their habitat is the deep reef walls. Both adults and juveniles swim together mixed up and are not afraid of divers at all. As you go deeper the more sunshine fish groups you find. **
 * Parrotfish: Large parrotfish swim by themselves while smaller ones join small schools that remain on the bottom of the ocean. The majority of the parrotfish are hermaphroditic and can even change gender when they are in the process of maturing. A very interesting fact about this specie is that some species of parrotfish create bubbles that wrap their bodies while sleeping. The three main species of parrotfish that you can observe in Curacao are the Princess Parrotfish, the Queen Parrotfish, and the Spotlight Parrotfish. **
 * -Princess Parrotfish and Spotlight Parrotfish: are usually found close to coral reefs and they feed off from rocks and corals by scrapping it. When approached they simply swim away. **
 * -Queen Parrotfish: are found around coral reefs and they feed off from rocks and corals by scraping algae from them. When they are approached, they swim away like the other species mentioned above. Queen Parrotfish are one of those species that create bubbles with their mucous substance from their mouth in order to trap their smell so predators are not attracted by them. **
 * Blue Tang: found in large groups or sometimes by themselves swimming around shallow reef tops. **
 * Grunt: Did you know that this specie of fishes produce a “grunt” sound when they eat because of the extension of their teeth breaking up their food in their throats by their air bladder? **
 * Throughout the day they usually gather together in small groups to large schools that are in the shadows of reefs. They are night-time feeders, hunting the sand flats and grass beds near reefs for crustaceans. The main type of grunt seen in Curaçao was the French Grunt. **
 * -French Grunt: lives in coral reefs and often join large schools, in the shade at the bottom. They swim away when divers come near them; if the diver wants to observe them closely they must move slowly and patiently. **
 * Yellowtail Snapper: Swims solitary most of the time but can be found in schools or aggregations above the reef and are easily approachable by divers. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Gray snapper: Swim in small schools and their habitat is in areas of low-depth especially in close proximity to mangrove sloughs, rocky outcroppings and under docks, but they can also be found in reefs. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Schoolmaster: They drift in small to medium groups just above reefs, in shade of large coral structures, especially elkhorn and large gorgonians. Juveniles often inhabit shallow bays, inlets and mangrove lagoons. To approach them, divers need to be slow and patient. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Sharknose Goby: Are described as clean fish and it feeds off the remains of food left in their mouths. They gather in cleaning stations where they settle in groups waiting for fish requiring their services. Something cool is that if a diver stretches his hand to these fish they would occasionally clean their fingers. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Redlip Blenny: Prefer rocky inshore areas and shallow coral reefs. They usually rest on reef crests. They are very territorial and will chase away intruding fish, however they can also be closely approached by divers. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Blue head wrasse: Normally are swimming around the reef sometimes in schools and act as cleaners. They remove debris and parasites from bigger fishes. They will swim close to divers so you can approach them and observe them easily. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Slippery Dick: Swim around the reef and in adjacent sand areas and grass beds. They don’t care about divers looking at them but they prefer to keep their distance if approached. Can be approached while swimming in their direction. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Four Eye Butterflyfish: Found around reef tops and are usually found in pairs. They don’t really care if there are divers but they move away when approached by them. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Spotfin Butterflyfish: are usually found swimming around reef tops, in pairs. They also tend to ignore divers, but swim away when approached. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Palometa: Schools are found in shallow waters over sand and near shallow patch reefs. One very interesting fact is that they are attracted to bubbles and intermittently an entire school will swim around a diver. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Smooth Trunkfish: Their habitat is in Clear water around coral reefs and seagrass beds of the western Atlantic Ocean. Typically ignore divers. **

**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Barracuda: These fish drift around reefs and other habitats. They can be found either solitary or in small groups. They breathe by opening and closing their mouth. They stay still when hunting. They tend to approach and follow divers around the reef and if they have something shiny they might attack. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Silversides: They swim in crowded schools in caves, deep cut canyons and other sheltered areas of reefs. Most of the time they group in the interiors of shipwrecks. When a schools swims towards a diver they will part, flow and contour around divers as the school passes. **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Trumpetfish: They live in coral reefs and change color and position in order to blend with the background. They drift in vertical position, head down, and paralleling stalks of sea rods. Most of the time they remain still to maintain camouflage. When divers come close or sense they have been spotted they swim away. ** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">[[image:https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/0OioIEJ7ogIV-3P9h8aa_pp_W4u_RSyj9G331IbeOaZWjrRSvgdBFM3cFavAliopRcucCjjGzlWf2hmaQBPoPYFeQKye6TCHGHvdlWbt24cfNz8HGSc]]