Saupe

• GeneralA plant-eater; at certain times of year its flesh can cause hallucinations if eaten.
• fisiologíaIt is a mainly plant-eating fish whose occasional consumption has historically been linked to mild, short-lived hallucinations, a phenomenon known as ichthyoallyeinotoxism.
• alimentaciónIt is one of the few Mediterranean fish that are mainly plant-eaters as adults, living on algae and seagrass, unlike most of the carnivorous rock fish.
• It is a protandrous hermaphrodite: it matures as a male and changes to female on passing about 25 cm.
• The juveniles are carnivorous and eat crustaceans; the adults are almost entirely herbivorous and graze algae and seagrass.
• It forms very tight shoals that move in coordination over the meadows.

Skeleton type

Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bony fish)

Habitat and environment

Seagrass meadows and shallow rocky bottoms

Sexual maturity

Length at first maturity 16.5 cm; in the Canary Islands males mature at around 22.6 cm and 2 years old and females at around 29.4 cm and 3 years old

Sources consulted: Wikipedia (es): Sarpa salpa