Sergeant major

The sergeant major is an abundant damselfish that we see on every dive. They don't get bigger than 7 inches, and they occur from the surface to 40 feet deep.  The fish in today's photos were about 5 inches long.

Most damselfish are incredibly territorial.  They will swim out and bite divers if they feel the diver is too close. The sergeant major becomes territorial only when guarding its eggs.  During the time that they guard eggs, their coloring changes to dark blue.

Guarding its purple eggs, getting ready to charge