Abstract

Parrotfish (Labridae: Scarinae) are ecologically and functionally important species in coral reefs, where their different feeding habits allow them to influence the structure of benthic communities. In this study, we quantified the composition and structure of parrotfish species in the Parque Nacional Arrecife Alacranes (PNAA). This reef is located 130 km off the northern Yucatan Penisula, Mexico, where anthropogenic disturbance is relatively low compared to that in coral reefs in the Mexican Caribbean. We quantified parrotfish structure over two depth ranges: one shallow (1.5 to < 10 m) and one deep (12 and 18 m) in the Leeward and Windward zone, where a total of 14 species were recorded. Parrotfish species presented high abundance and large sizes, where the most abundant were Scarus guacamaia, S. coelestinus, S. coeruleus and Spari-soma viride. Parrotfish in the PNAA seem to be one of the best structured fish assemblages of the Yucatan Peninsula in terms of species richness, abundance, and size.

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