Queen Parrotfish

Photo: Luke B · © all rights reserved

Supermale queen parrotfish are a centrepiece species at Trunk Bay, their turquoise and salmon colouration a vivid contrast against bleached sand. They continually bite coral rock with fused beak-like teeth, processing calcium carbonate into the white sand that defines the bay's famous shoreline. A single large male may produce hundreds of kilograms of sand annually, making them keystone engineers of the reef habitat.