The big-beaked, rock-munching fish that protect coral reefs - Mike Gil

Discover the quirky creature known as the parrotfish, and the key role it plays in keeping coral reefs healthy and thriving.
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As the sun rises over a quiet coral reef, one animal breaks the morning silence. Named for its vibrant scales and beak-like teeth, the parrotfish devours a particularly crunchy breakfast: rocks. Why would any creature take bites out of the seafloor? Mike Gil explores how these quirky and flashy foragers play a key role in defending the essential coral reef ecosystem.
Lesson by Mike Gil, directed by Franz Palomares.
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Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Jose Arcadio Valdes Franco, Brandy Sarver, Guy Hardy, Tu-Anh Nguyen, Karl Laius, Madee Lo, JY Kang, Marc Bou Zeid, Abhishek Goel, Charles A Hershberger, Coenraad Keuning, Robert Seik, Heidi Stolt, Alexis Hevia, Todd Gross, Brady Jones, Christina Salvatore, Zhong Ming Zenny Tan, Karisa Caudill, Bruno Pinho, Derek Drescher, Mihail Radu Pantilimon, Amin Shahril, Mohamed Elsayed, Barthélémy Michalon, Chumi Ogbonna, Karlee Finch, Mohammad Said, jj5252, Kelvin Lam, Mauricio Basso, Athena Grace Franco, Tirath Singh Pandher, Melvin Williams, Tsz Hin Edmund Chan, Nicolas Silva, Raymond Lee, Kurt Almendras, Denise A Pitts, Abdallah Absi, Dee Wei, Richard A Berkley, Tim Armstrong, Daniel Nester, Hashem Al, denison martins fernandes, Doug Henry, Arlene Spiegelman, Michał Friedrich and Joshua Wasniewski.

[@Dlawderek]

I was like oh this is cute then suddenly, “Unfortunately, due to human activity...” We always mess everything up.

[@Asmaa_311]

Humans are monsters...

[@leosong829]

So trye

[@edgemadefoxe367]

I was waiting for this part, cause we always mess things up

[@j_usteen]

Same

[@overwicket1339]

@@Asmaa_311 true

[@Say_Tin]

The dislikes are from seaweeds that thought they were safe until the parrotfish came along

[@Say_Tin]

@LateralRazor Yessir

[@thowfeekamn8028]

LateralRazor consider reading al-Qur’an :)

[@idontknowimebored77]

Hey my peeps Arnt all bad

[@idontknowimebored77]

Should not have said that forget it

[@derpatel9760]

i am the sacred 600th like

[@NxVernxual]

This literally gave "eat rocks" phrase a whole new meaning

[@gregoryfenn1462]

Is it a phrase that people say?

[@NxVernxual]

@@gregoryfenn1462 yes it is

[@timtalksanimations9171]

@@gregoryfenn1462 Never heard of it lol

[@lucasgreenwood1481]

@@gregoryfenn1462 Example: Eat rocks scrub!

[@paisan8766]

It’s “go kick rocks” but ok

[@saitamabrando2538]

Just like the rocks the fish eats, this video is pretty solid

[@the_hanburger]

**diego brando vibes**

[@Hexamath]

So is this comment.

[@par9362]

I guess you could say that it’s far from rock-bottom

[@VUfElectrolyticCapacitor]

Shut up and take my like.👍

[@sreejasrivaram8250]

You better keep this video away from your relative or else you better be prepared to be a caretaker of this fish.

[@ZOCCOK]

He protec He attac but most importantly *He eat rock as snacc*

[@TEDEd]

A masterful bit of poetry!

[@nakar882]

Ah yes rocks the best snacc

[@ryanyuan9592]

Hmm yes

[@ARedMotorcycle]

A masterful bit of poetry? These idiots have been repeating this same lame meme format for a long time. It requires no talent. It's for participation trophy idiots that can find anything that can rhyme with "attack". Unoriginal and insipid as you can get. They shouldn't be encouraged.

[@aaronkou1751]

A Red Motorcycle Did anyone ask?

[@jethcabusas4700]

"Coral is under attack of sea weeds". Parrot fish: it's free real estate 👌

[@idontknowimebored77]

Hmmmm weeds

[@waseem4251]

0:07 My heart goes "who lives in the pineapple under the sea."

[@pyaesonehtun4234]

Same lmao 😂

[@kennethsummers6857]

SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS

[@shelbytomy07]

SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS!!!

[@badam9656]

Ur actually subbed to mojo.com ur weird

[@askar_412]

IMAO

[@racoonlittle1679]

Ted-ED: why does this fish eat rocks? Me: I dunno, that's why I'm here.

[@samshaw7087]

k

[@nabayanchakma2419]

K

[@bruh-ie2wk]

Potassium

[@nabayanchakma2419]

@@bruh-ie2wk H2SO4:

[@dheeladheel]

This really opened my eyes, I always thought that they ate the corals and thus they were a danger to the reefs.

[@CoconutPalmPictures]

They do eat coral. This video doesn't mention that.

[@alexissantana4603]

Unfortunately parrot fish is being hunted in the Dominican Republic, there’s no need to do it, but still, they do it

[@yungjose3369]

Why is that? Do they have any reason?

[@alexissantana4603]

yung jose they just eat them, there was a prohibition to catch them last year but they made it legal again this year

[@RTX_valorant]

@@alexissantana4603 sad to hear.i headed Chinese again started illegal fishing near equador😓

[@jasayehan]

They should be catching those pesky lionfish which are invading the Caribbean and endangering the reef ecosystem there!

[@matt2m]

We eat them in Jamaica as well they taste good that’s why.

[@Alphaloser1874]

Coral Reefs: Weak Boi Sea Weed: Bully Parrotfish: The teacher a bullied student needs.

[@ryanyuan9592]

Hahaha It’s funny because the teacher doesn’t care and only puts the victim in detention

[@dimonjack208]

Humans: haha dropping ocean ph go brrr

[@fathfez7991]

*7 of mother nature's mistakes, number 8 will surprise you*

[@half.blight]

lmao, do teachers ever stopped bullying?

[@bb8219]

Teacher who doesn't exist

[@selfable-relyonyourself3504]

For most of history, man has had to fight nature to survive; in this century he is beginning to realize that, in order to survive, he must protect

[@flufflecake9232]

Deep

[@khushbuthakur2669]

Really true

[@ZOCCOK]

Nature is like a giant balance scale Even the smallest of disturbances can cause huge unforeseen consequences.

[@yellowstarproductions6743]

So true

[@idk3284]

legit, the drawing, coloring, animation, even the words is really impressive and professionally made, but still easy to understand. Thank you for making this channel

[@sebastianelytron8450]

Why did the fish cross the reef? To get to the other tide.

[@ZOCCOK]

Hello on the other tideeeeee!!!

[@F0rever_zer0]

Booooooooooooooooooo

[@stephenrolle2671]

That shore was a good joke ;)

[@crazygenius1480]

I cant sea where this is going

[@christinejoyinoc9185]

Fish crossing

[@Paxsali]

Eating rocks! My favourite activity.

[@smalldreamercat4493]

I'm ashamed to say that I already knew all of this. from The Octonauts.

[@alephnull423]

Ok.

[@leosong829]

Loved that as a baby

[@ascetic3312]

Why in the world would you be ashamed of that?

[@sib113]

@@ascetic3312 octonauts is a kid show, and it feels embarrassing watching it as a teen.

[@ascetic3312]

@@sib113 Bah. Watch what you want to watch. Do you know how many college kids watched Spongebob when it first came out? Pretty much all of them (in the U.S., anyway). They weren't remotely the target demographic but it was probably just as if not more popular among them than the kids the show was intended for. Smalldreamercat learned something from the show. Stop caring what other people think of you and live your life (as long as you aren't hurting anyone along the way). If other people have a problem with how you live your life, that's their problem. If they want to waste their own time moaning about something, don't let them waste your time, too.

[@J11_boohoo]

corals: but everything changed when the seaweeds attacked seaweeds: but everything changed when the parrot fishes attacked parrot fishes: but everything changed when the humans attacked!

[@aditisk99]

Humans: But everything changed when someone ate a bat.

[@generationedge6699]

@@aditisk99 lol

[@guntherdoesaliltrolling5757]

CIRCLE OF LIFE!

[@theamazingclone3282]

Everybody gangsta till parrot fish flys out of the water.

[@kavishshah5233]

@@aditisk99 have a like human

[@TH3F4LC0Nx]

Parrotfish be like: "I'll take one on the rocks!"

[@advaitanand1864]

Didn't even think of a such a species of fish which eats rocks, really good to know such new things.

[@Mas-kn9wt]

The sound that the parrotfish makes while eating rocks is *pure ASMR*

[@asheefaazmialifia3069]

Yeah tho

[@hfbnffsdugai3754]

It's like grazing your plate to make home for your neighbours

[@noyza2132]

these videos are getting weirder and weirder. and i love it!

[@lt2143]

The animation and narrator voice make watching this not only informational but also very soothing and enjoyable.

[@CarlosHernandez-yy5ys]

I've snorkeled with these a couple of times; they're one of the coolest fish to watch!

[@jaypandya8928]

HEY TED-ED I JUST LOVE YOUR ANIMATIONS APPRECIATE YOUR EFFORT

[@anandmishradevil1914]

ted ed ....please make a video on prisoners dilemma and nash equilibirum....you guys are doing great by making such informative and animated videos..thank you

[@labdhisharma5396]

The animation of the eating if parrot fish is very satisfying

[@KGisthename]

These are seriously gorgeous fish in person.

[@evertontsai4496]

The fact that this lesson on a fish is provided by Mile "Gil" makes it even better.

[@moribuntaro]

Things I already know since I watched the octonauts as a kid

[@monique-octowhale]

Y'all didn't talk about the most interesting part of the parrot fish!! Their *mucus bubbles* !

[@lucasyoung9594]

They are like the gardeners of the ocean!!

[@user-ld1sn6ur5i]

Ted ed guy:parrotfish social networks Me:the fish internet?

[@labibrajarahman9556]

The best informative KZbin channel...🥰🥰

[@bethesdagamer7971]

Beautiful fish. I saw one while snorkeling 🤿 once

[@guangruixia]

Amazing illustrations!

[@richardhammond9757]

The colours in this is on another level..

[@jamesbrownization]

Nature is incredible

[@tsukiya_0]

The seaweed has been real quiet since this dropped

[@marlamalkin2980]

I didn't know that parrot fish were a thing, they're so amazing and beautiful!

[@thespicywonton]

Aw man this just made me realize a whole lot. This fish is hunted a lot where I’m from, and it just saddens me how it’s apart of our culture, but also could lead to the destruction of our oceans

[@-yui9763]

White sand! What a beautiful creature, and my favorite fish. They are so vital that the environment!

[@jordanoutten746]

They tates just like grouper! Love them..

[@rocketscience475]

i think ive seen one before! i searched up pictures and saw a green-and-orange one that looked just like a fish i saw on a trip to hawaii!

[@facebook5964]

Some incredible fish out there , Its Like a whole different world right beneath us , Mind = Blown

[@san6292]

All these animations are great.

[@glassapple5903]

Parrot fish are one of my favorite species

[@conflictpurple9994]

seen em at maldives they are really cool and nice to the touch :3

[@user-sexygayhong]

The sound that parrot fish scratching rock is extremely satisfying

[@moodypear]

love the crunch

[@orangeapplesauce1132]

What an amazing art style!

[@blyat1]

Not only that they are also one of the major reasons those beaches ypu spend your weekends at are formed!

[@standowner6979]

Sakura I miss going to the beach. It's been years

[@blyat1]

@@standowner6979 u know Japanese?

[@standowner6979]

@@blyat1 Yep, but just a bit

[@blyat1]

@@standowner6979 me too, actually I live in Dallas since I was 16 but I go back to Osaka frequently...

[@standowner6979]

@@blyat1 amazing. I'm in New Mexico. What would you recommend about Osaka? Because I have been to Japan but, one day I'm going to pay a visit

[@abinothayyilsanoj4182]

You can often count the number of seeds in an orange but you can't count the number of oranges in a seed .

[@heristyono4755]

"overfishing has reduced the number of parrotfish in many coral reefs" seaweed: It's free real estate

[@VUfElectrolyticCapacitor]

This takes the term Rockfish to a whole another level.

[@starlingbaez6681]

0:07 who lives in a pineapple under the sea

[@askar_412]

SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS

[@EilrahCriS]

Another very precise video about coral reefs, love this...

[@subscriberswithNOvideoch-jq4po]

Fish: *nom nom nom* tHiS rOcK iS gOoD Other fish: ugh, it morning again

[@chaleebangyang675]

The ocean has wayyy more bigger surprises than we can ever assume. Mark my words.

[@patisenah]

I live in Indonesia, in a city near the sea and i have eaten this fish before. My parent bought it from a local fisherman. I thought it's an endangered species since it has beautiful vibrant color and unique mouth but i ate it anyway (because we dont know what species it is). I dont know if this fish was taken at the rate below the maximum sustainable yield here but i will avoid eating them again and educate my family about this. Thank you for making this video.

[@johanandhira5429]

Went scuba diving once. Happily feeding the fishes with bread the instructor gave me. Then came this massive fellow driving out those who feeds from my hand. I was shocked but thinking I can't be more surprised than this. Gosh I was wrong. Unleashing it's giant beak-like teeth, it munched the whole bread like it was nothing. Terrified of losing a finger, I throwed everything I got while taking few steps behind, all while my instructor was couple meters in front of me, taking pictures. Didn't see it, but I knew he's lowkey laughing behind that scuba mask seeing me frantically fending off the mighty parrotfish. 10/10 would feed again, and next time, I shall come prepared.

[@zack7122]

aww what a great little fish

[@TH-is8cf]

The opening quotes always get me interested in the text theyre from

[@cyrlllzz__ed]

The Rock:"chuckles I'm in danger''

[@dun8410]

Now this is what they call " By design"

[@qwerasdliop2810]

I've done diving and snorkeling in Andaman, and though I don't want to expose this little secret of mine, not even the great barrier reef has even come close to the beauty of the corals at elephant beach, Havelock. I have yet to see pictures that are as beautiful as those that I saw in Andaman. thanks to my dad being in navy we had our own snorkel set and we treked to the beach at 5 am. The fish were swarming around us in schools! You legit can't find such a beautiful coral reef even on the internet! trust me I checked! It was one of the most beautiful things I've seen in real life. Oh and there were dozens of parrot fish!

[@ry.hoshiko5482]

The animation is beautiful

[@badlittlewolf2606]

TED-Ed out here asking the real questions

[@tiberiusstaicu7853]

*giant beaked rainbow fish that eat rocks* just sounds like the most alien thing ever

[@PalomaMayumi]

Ted-Ed, love love love you!

[@Jungkith]

_"unfortunately human...."_ Me: -_-

[@aaravgupta7963]

I saw this in wild kratts but still saw this video to see how you explain it

[@otakuxgirl6]

Happy 12M subscribers😁 And the animation is amazing

[@dani-xt8ci]

lol when i went on a trip to Aruba we went scuba diving and we saw these fish. they are beautiful.

[@standowner6979]

Ted-Ed please do a "Why you should read Marcel Proust"

[@onelext3166]

Every episode I wait for the word "Unfortunateley". In a good way.

[@devonoved7]

Parrot fish were once a regular catch on the jamaican south coast. Now fishermen rarely find any even miles out to sea.

[@cramerfloro5936]

The Ted Ed people might have great ideas for videos, but can we talk about their absolute brilliance in naming them?

[@strange_and_magnificent]

I love ❤️ these animated videos. TED Ed teaches me more than school 🏫.

[@Brian-np6tx]

I love the animation style on this video!

[@---nk4mk]

This is why I kinda don't mind the quarantine since it can kinda help with growth.

[@paranoia1330]

I find the titles funny like this one "The big beaked, rock munching fish that protect coral reefs - Mike Gil" Makes me think that the Fish name is Mike Gil

[@jirehchoo2151]

Protect our coral reefs!

[@rahulsinghrajput2231]

Nature is so beautiful😍, amazing 😮, balanced 🙃, and sometimes scarey😱...

[@christiancoloradoibajan9645]

This is how mothernature Balance the ecosystem

[@furankisaveron7278]

I learned this from Octonauts on Disney Jr. when I was younger. I was so proud when I got the name right 🥰🥳

[@fabrizioburgosmore6220]

Ted-Ed: Nooks and crannies me: ANIMAL CROSSING NEW HORIZONS

[@prakharchaudhary9797]

0:10 I loved the colour change.

[@EmeraldLavigne]

2:19 Well. Guess I'm not sleeping tonight.

[@khodibritton8368]

Ecosystems: **exist** Humans: *So you have chosen...death.*

[@hf27172]

My thought throughout this 😂 : That's rainbow fish from that show! So seaweed really are weeds! 😂

[@deevee5348]

parrot fish on white sand beaches: you're welcome...

[@cripplingdepression213]

Me: your gonna eat my dust. Parrot Fish: I eat rocks for breakfast.

[@chisaquaticvibe6524]

I love them!!!

[@user-ir3ot6mo2m]

Wow this is totally interesting a fish eating rocks

[@syrmik2686]

Ohh wow, this is a new video.. I didn't realize

[@ryanrhodes5819]

Pairs well with any beverage

[@MC_lupin]

Parrot fish: Rocks rock, Change my mind

[@SG003]

Eating rocks enables it to use the move Bullet Seed which is super effective against water type, so this way it dominates the area