Editorial Type:
Article Category: Research Article
| Online Publication Date: 01 Jan 2000
Shark (Carcharhinus perezi), Cleaned by the Goby (Elacatinus randalli), at Fernando de Noronha Archipelago, Western South Atlantic
Shark (Carcharhinus perezi), Cleaned by the Goby (Elacatinus randalli), at Fernando de Noronha Archipelago, Western South Atlantic
and
Page Range: 297 – 299
Sharks are seldom recorded as associates of reef-based cleaner fishes. Here we report on juvenile Caribbean Reef Sharks, Carcharhinus perezi, associated with Yellownose Gobies, Elacatinus randalli, off northern Brazil. The sharks sought out cleaning stations tended by the gobies and posed on the bottom while being cleaned. The bottom-resting habit of C. perezi possibly facilitates cleaning interactions with the bottom-dwelling cleaner gobies.Abstract
Copyright: The American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists
Fig. 1.
A juvenile Caribbean reef shark, Carcharhinus perezi, lying on its side while being cleaned by two individuals of the yellownose goby, Elacatinus randalli. One goby is on the lower jaw and the other is near the base of the right pectoral fin. Photo by D. Brisolla
Accepted: 07 Jun 1999