Maldives Marine Life

Marine life of Maldivian waters

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Candelamoa parrotfish
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Photo: Diego Delso / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (view on Wikimedia Commons)

Candelamoa parrotfish

Hipposcarus harid

Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).

English
Candelamoa parrotfish
Scientific
Hipposcarus harid
Dhivehi
Landaa
Group
Reef fish
Family
Scaridae (parrotfishes; now often placed in Labridae)
Maximum size
Up to about 75 cm (total length); commonly 35 cm; max. published weight 2.3 kg
Depth and habitat
Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 1 to 25 m
IUCN status
LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2009

Description

A large, elongate parrotfish with a long snout; females are pale brownish, and males are blue-green with orange edges to the fins and a yellow-green blotch. It feeds on algae in groups over coral reefs and reef flats.

In the Maldives

FishBase (Maldives) gives only the general name landaa. Parrotfish have been protected in the Maldives since 2020.

Sources

  • fishbase.se /summary/Hipposcarus-harid.html
  • fishbase.se /comnames/CommonNamesList.php?ID=7906&GenusName=Hipposcarus&SpeciesNam
  • commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Pez_loro_candelamoa_(Hipposcarus_harid),_parque_nacional_Ra

Dhivehi name source: FishBase common names (country: Maldives) give 'Landaa' (Latin script). FLAG: single source.