The rock beauty is a member of the angelfish family. As it grows, the coloration changes from nearly completely yellow (with a blue-ringed, black spot on the body) as juveniles, to black across the body as the fish mature. The head and tail remain yellow, and the blue markings above and below the eye are present at all stages. Adults develop blue lips.
This fish has a very striking appearance, and although I often try to photograph them, my efforts are usually without success. They are rather shy. They grow up to 12 inches, but the adults in these photos were only about 8 inches long. The photos were taken at depths between 15 and 40 feet.
 |
| Juvenile, about 2 inches |
 , |
| Juvenile/intermediate, about 4 inches |
No comments:
Post a Comment