Vertebrate homologs of Caenorhabditis elegans Par-3 have versatile biological functions, including the prototypical role in cell polarization; such functional versatility may be partly explained by the variety of vertebrate Par-3 homologs. Thus, revealing the similarities and differences among individual Par-3 homologs is a prerequisite for a thorough understanding of their biology in vertebrates. Here, we identified and characterized Pard3c, one of the four zebrafish Par-3 orthologs. The Pard3c sequence is most closely related to that of Pard3, a zebrafish Par-3 ortholog that has been studied extensively. Surprisingly, unlike Pard3, Pard3c does not restrictively localize apically nor is it required for epithelial apicobasal polarity; instead, Pard3c localizes broadly to the cell membranes and is required for proper levels of cell survival and proliferation during the morphogenesis of the retina, lens, midbrain-hindbrain boundary, pharynx, and pectoral fin. Thus, despite the loss of the hallmark function of regulating apicobasal polarity as other Par-3 homologs do, Pard3c yet plays indispensable roles in zebrafish organogenesis.