The spotty or paketi, ''Notolabrus celidotus'', is a
species
A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
of
wrasse
The wrasses are a family, Labridae, of marine ray-finned fish, many of which are brightly colored. The family is large and diverse, with over 600 species in 81 genera, which are divided into nine subgroups or tribes.
They are typically small, ...
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
to the waters around
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
, including
Stewart Island
Stewart Island (, ' glowing skies', officially Stewart Island / Rakiura, formerly New Leinster) is New Zealand's third-largest island, located south of the South Island, across Foveaux Strait.
It is a roughly triangular island with a la ...
and the surrounding areas. It can be found on
reefs
A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral, or similar relatively stable material lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic (non-living) processes such as deposition of sand or wave eros ...
at depths from , though most common in shallower parts of that range. This species can reach in
standard length
Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of fish anatomy, their anatomies, for data used in many areas of ichthyology, including Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy and fishery biology.
Overall length
Standard length (SL) is ...
.
[
]
Biology
Like other wrasses, spotties begin life as females. Once they reach a length of 13–19 cm at the age of 3–4 years, some of the largest fish may turn into males. Male spotties stake out territories in which they maintain a harem of roughly 20 females that they aggressively defend from other males. When a male dies, the dominant female in the harem will change sex over a few days and take over control of both the harem and territory. This social structure keeps the sex ratio strongly biased towards females. Spawning usually occurs from late July to the end of October.[Francis, Malcolm. The Ubiquitous Spotty]
The Ubiquitous Spotty
Friends of Toputeranga Marine Reserve. Retrieved on 13 November 2015
References
Spotty (fish)
Endemic marine fish of New Zealand
Fish described in 1801
Labridae
{{Labridae-stub