Ornate Wrasse

The ornate wrasse brings a splash of colour to the rocky coasts of the Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic, with males and females looking so different they are easy to mistake for two species.

Also known as: turkish wrasse, peacock wrasse

The strong colour difference between sexes can confuse divers into thinking they have found two species; check for the turquoise tail fin, shared by both males and females, to confirm it is one species.

Females are greenish-brown with a dark bar on each scale and five pale blue vertical stripes. Males have red heads with blue markings and a vertical blue stripe edged in red just behind the pectoral fin, the paired fin behind the gills. Both sexes have a turquoise tail fin. Juveniles are plain green with a black spot on the back, below the dorsal fin, the fin along the spine. The body is long and flattened side to side, with a pointed head, short snout, and thick lips. In older fish the tail fin becomes concave with trailing filament-like rays on its outer edges.

It lives on rocky reefs with algae growth and in seagrass beds, from the shallows down to 150 m, most often above 50 m, and it also settles around wrecks, piers, and jetties.

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  Bird wrasse

  Gomphosus varius

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  Blackeye thicklip

  Hemigymnus melapterus

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  Bluestreak cleaner wrasse

  Labroides dimidiatus

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  Caribbean Bluehead Wrasse

  Thalassoma bifasciatum

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  Checkerboard wrasse

  Halichoeres hortulanus

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  Green Wrasse

  Labrus viridis