Green Humphead Parrotfish picture used with permission

Classification

Domain: Eukarya

The cells contain membrane bound organelles and a nucleus surrounded by a nuclear membrane.

Kingdom: Animalia

The animal is multicellular, with no cell walls encasing the cells. Our organism is also heterotrophic.

Phylum: Chordata

They are in the Chordata group because they have a notochord and dorsal nerve chord.

Class: Actinopterygii

The Green Humphead Parrotfish is considered a ray-finned spiny fish ( characteristic of all wrasse family).

Order: Percifores

As viewed below on the phylogenetic trees the Bolbometopon muricatum is a perch-like fish.

Family: Scaridae

All parrotfish share this family name becuse of their unique mouth that is beak-like.

Genus: Bolbometopon

Definition is explained below.

Species: Bolbometopon muricatum

Bolbometopon is placed within the species name. Muricatum is a Latin word that means "covered with short, sharp points". These would be on the tail and dorsal side of the fish.


The Bolbomentopon muricatum was first found and classified by Achille Valenciennes and Alexander von Hombolat in the years surrounding 1840. Archille was a french zoologist who carried out diverse classifications on organisms and linked many of them together to help finish family trees. With Alexander von Hombolat they traveled around the world giving authority to many species of fish (Arkive 2008). They also helped givethe name to the Bartail Jawfish, along with the Green Humphead Parrotfish (Encyclopedia of Life 2009).

The Bolbometopon root name itself was classified or given a  name in 1956. The meaning of this name is an organism that dwells in the ocean and has a verticle profile that is fully covered with scales form head to tail (Arkive 2008). This particular fish was said to have a distince forehead which you can view more information on the Interactions page.


Figure 2. Above is the phylogenic tree of the family Labridae based on nuclear and mitochondrial DNA sequences.
 
Figure 1. Above is the phylogenetic tree of the family Labridae based on nuclear and mitochondrial DNA sequences. This image shows the relationship between the Local phylogenetic divergence and global evolutionary convergence of skull function in reef fishes of the family Labridae (Click to see other phylogeny).

The families scaridae (Scarus) and Labridae are very closely related, that is why in the figure above Chlorurus sordidus is seen as a part of the Labridae family. All of the species that branch off scarines are different species of parrotfish. They all have the unique feature of fused teeth forming a beak, which is one of the reasons that they are grouped together. A parrotfish simular to ours is the Bullethead Parrotfish. Off of the Labridae, all of the sub-classifications are of wrasse fish. A wrasse fish is known to have a symbiotic relationship with a cleaner fish (Pacific Cleaner Shrimp) and is usually brightly colored; this describes the Chlorurus sordidus perfectly. The Napoleon Wrasse is a fish that shares part of the phylogenetic tree with the Humphead fish, which is in the Wrasse group. Our fish the Bolbometopon muricatum fits in this group as it is within the same domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order and family (Russo. 2008).

A phylogeny of Scaridae. The pictures on branches represent important transitions in the evolutionary history of parrotfishes, rather than hypothesized ancestral states.

 Figure 2. A phylogeny of Scaridae. The branches of this image represent important transitions in the evolutionary history of parrotfishes, rather than hypothesized ancestral states. These are modified pharyngeal jaw parts, oral jaw and teeth structure, and sexual dichromatism. Modified jaw parts are first show after the Leptoscarus vaigiensis.  These jaw parts are shared by all parrotfishes. Modifications in the oral jaw and teeth structure followed and is shown in the clade onward from Scarus psittacus (shared by the reef scarids). For more information on the jaw funtions visit our Interactions page. The last of these transitions is pronounced sexual dichromatism (male and female Scarus frenatus) characterizing a subclade of reef scarids. This sexual dichromatism isexplained in more depth on our Reproduction page. Species totals are in the right column, and you can view more phelogeny in the link above (Royal Society. 2013).




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