Skip to content
fishing forecast

ember parrotfish

Scarus rubroviolaceus · Labridae · omnivore

Parrotfish of eastern Pacific reefs, with males in two sharply marked colors. It is commercially caught and only occasionally takes a line.

Also called: peixe-papagaio-violáceo, loro violáceo, loro bicolor, ember parrotfish

Scientific illustration of Ember parrotfish
maximum
70 cm
depth
1–36 m
location

Sample location: choose yours to see the forecast for where you fish.

period

Reading the weather across 3 global models and 31 simulations…

the species

everything about the ember parrotfish

overview

who is the ember parrotfish

The violet parrotfish belongs to the family Labridae and reaches 70 cm. It lives alone or in pairs on reefs exposed to the sea, on stone or coral bottoms, from 1 to 36 m. On slopes with boulders, at the base of cliffs of high islands, it may form large schools. It occurs in the eastern Pacific, from the Gulf of California to the Galápagos, and also in the Indo-Pacific. It eats algae from the bottom and is protogynous: born female, it can change into a male. Males have two colors, brown to dark green on the head and front of the body, and lighter green toward the rear. It is an uncommon species, commercially caught and used in aquariums.

Essential profile. Identification, where it occurs and rules, with data from FishBase and the cited regulations. Season, time of day, technique and bait are added once we have a good source for the ember parrotfish; in the meantime, see the similar species.

fun facts

  • The change of sex, from female to male, occurs at about 37 cm and 13 years of age.
how to recognize it

identification

Parrotfish with males in two sharply separated colors: the head and front of the body are dark, and the rear is lighter. The female is reddish to grayish, with small black spots and irregular dark lines on the body. Older males have the tail with elongated lobes, which helps identify them.

distribution

where found

open on the large map

Occurs in the eastern Pacific, from the Gulf of California to the Galápagos, on reefs and slopes, and also in the Indo-Pacific.

Habitat: Rocky or coral reefs and slopes, 1 to 36 m, sometimes in pairs.

what the law says

rules for the ember parrotfish

Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.

We found no species-specific rule beyond the region's general rules.

catch and release
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.

Harmless to anglers. As a large reef fish, hold it with both hands and release it carefully to avoid injuring its body.

calculator

how much it weighs without taking it out of the water

Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.01479, b = 3.05; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa da própria espécie)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.

estimated weight

—

sources and references

Essential profile: size, length-weight, depth, countries and conservation come from FishBase and the cited regulations, and the texts were written from those sources. Season, time of day, sensitivities, technique and baits and lures are not included yet, because we did not find a good source for this species.

  1. scientific FishBase: Scarus rubroviolaceus (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
  2. scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Scarus rubroviolaceusNames by country and language.
don't confuse

similar species