Graybar Grunt

Family: Grunts (Haemulidae)
Size: Up to 71 cm (28 in) | Common: 40 cm
Depth: 3 – 30m (10 – 100ft)

Distribution: Eastern Tropical Pacific (Gulf of California to Peru, including the Galapagos Islands).

Identification: A heavily striped, schooling fish common on shallow rocky reefs.

• The "Gray Bars": The silvery-white body is prominently marked by 6 or 7 thick, dark vertical bars across its sides that fade slightly toward the belly.
• Yellow Accents: The pectoral and pelvic fins, as well as the inside of the mouth, often feature a distinct yellowish tint.
• Grunt Profile: Like all grunts, it has a sloping head profile and a relatively large mouth, which it uses to grind its pharyngeal teeth together to produce a "grunting" sound when distressed.

Behavior: Highly social daytime resters and nocturnal foragers.

• Dense Schooling: During the day, they form massive, tightly packed, stationary schools near rocky drop-offs, caves, and overhangs to protect themselves from predators.
• Nighttime Hunting: As the sun sets over the Chocó coast, these large schools disperse. Individuals head out over the sandy and rubble bottoms to hunt for crabs, shrimp, and small benthic invertebrates.