in the day in rocky areas. The spawning behaviour of the bluestriped grunt is little known, but is known to take place from January to April in the Caribbean Sea. The larvae settle into sea-grass beds at lengths that range from as they grow into juveniles. These fish often display open-mouthed, head-on pushing each other backwards, and they also produce a grunting noise using pharyngeal teeth. They are preyed on by larger fish such as sharks and groupers, and among their known parasites is the monogenean, Encotyllabe spari. Systematics The bluestriped grunt was first formally described in 1803 as Sparus sciurus by English zoologist George Shaw (1751-1813), with the type locality given as the Antilles. The specific name sciurus means "squirrel", squirrelfish being one of the vernacular names of this species at the time, presumably because of its production of grunts. Utilisation The bluestriped grunt is caught using hook and line, traps, and seines. The catch is not recorded separately for this species. The flesh is normally sold fresh. It is rare in the aquarium trade but is more common in public aquarium displays due to its size. References External links blue striped grunt Fish of the Gulf of Mexico Fish of the Caribbean Fish of the Western Atlantic blue striped grunt