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| Common names: surgeonfish (English), cirujano (Espanol), navajón (Espanol) |
Ctenochaetus marginatus (Valenciennes in Cuvier & Valenciennes, 1835)
Blue-spotted surgeonfish, Striped-fin surgeonfish
Body an elongate oval; head profile steep; eye high on the head; mouth small, protrusible, low on head, with large, fleshy lips; teeth on jaws slender, flexible, tips curved, expanded, with 3-4 tiny teeth on one side, adults with as many as 44 upper and 60 lower teeth; gill rakers 26-29; dorsal fin VIII, 27-28; anal rays III, 25; pectoral rays 16-17; pelvic fin I, 5; a single depressible spine on the side of the base of the tail; tail fin concave; scales very small, rough; lateral line complete.
Dark brown with numerous close-set small blue spots covering head and body; blue lines on dorsal, tail, anal and pelvic fins.
Size: to 30 cm.
Inhabits rock and coral reefs in shallow wave-affected areas.
Depth: 0-40 m.
Scattered localities in the tropical central and eastern Pacific, in the latter region known from Costa Rica to Colombia and all the offshore islands except the Galapagos.