5S 



THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



lersea Photograph hy Dr. W. H. Uongley 



UNDERSEA STUDY OI< A FAMILY GROUP OP YPLLOW GRUNTS 



To realize the full value of this amazing photograph, one must remember that these 

 multihued fish arc at home among the coral and sea-fans of their natural habitat, many feet 

 beneath the surface of the Gulf Stream. The yellow grunt is one of the species of fishes 

 which makes a croaking or grunting sound, a fact from which it derives its name. A 

 distinguishing feature of this fish is its bright red or orange color at the base of the jaws 

 and inside the mouth. The color patch is revealed to its fullest extent when the mouth is 

 opened wide in the presence of an enemy, or when it invites the services of the butterfly 

 fish to enter between its jaws and extract certain parasites attached to the walls of its 

 mouth ( see Color Plate VII ). 



