Creature Feature – Scissortail Sergeant
This week is the letter ‘S’, and today’s featured creature is the Scissortail Sergeant. The scissortail sergeant belongs to the family of damselfish, and they get their name from the black lines that extend across the superior and inferior lobes of their tail.
Taxonomy
Scientific Name: Abudefduf sexfasciatus
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Family: Pomacentridae
Genus: Abudefduf
Scissortail Sergeant Fact File
Size: Individuals grow to a length of around 16cm
Distribution: This species occurs in tropical and temperate marine waters of the Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea, north to Japan, south to Australia and east to the Tuamoto Islands
Diet: Their diet is varied and comprises of algae, zooplankton, small fish, and crustaceans
Behaviour: Adults live in coral reefs while younger individuals live in the open sea. Like some other fish species, male fish are in charge of parental care
IUCN Status: Least Concern. They are common in the Indo-Pacific region with no known major threats
