Novaculichthys taeniourus (Lacepède, 1801) (Plate IV, 32)

Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / None.FAO names: En - Rockmover wrasse; Fr - Rason aigue; Sp - Doncella aiguera.

Diagnostic characters: Body moderately deep, its depth 2.6 to 3 times in standard length, and compressed,its width 2.4 to 3 times in its depth. Dorsal profile of head slightly convex, head forming an acute angle; jawsprominent, 2 large canines situated anteriorly in each jaw; no enlarged tooth at rear of upper jaw.Dorsal fin continuous, with IX spines and 12 (rarely 13) soft rays; the first 2 dorsal-fin spines flexible,distinctly elongate in juveniles; anal fin with III spines and 12 soft rays; pectoral fins with ii unbranchedand 11 branched rays; pelvic fins not filamentous; caudal fin rounded. Lateral line interrupted belowposterior portion of dorsal fin, with 19 or 20 pored scales on anterior portion and 5 or 6 on peduncularportion. Scales not reaching onto bases of dorsal and anal fins; no scales in front of dorsal fin, 2 small rowsof scales on cheek behind and below eye; opercle and lower jaw without scales. Colour: body greenishbrown, sides with a pearly white spot on each scale; head with 2 pairs of white-edged brown linesradiating backwards from eye, first pair directed upwards and the other downwards; fins greenish brownmatching body; dorsal and anal fins with whitish reticulations; caudal fin with a broad white vertical bandbasally and whitish reticulations distally; a prominent black spot at forward end of dorsal fin; a secondon pectoral-fin base. Large individuals with red chest and belly. Small individuals with whitish head and2 additional pairs of brown lines radiating forward and downward from eye; white spots on sides somewhatarranged into vertical bands.Size: Maximum total length about 30 cm.Habitat, biology, and fisheries: Found primarily on coral, sand, and rubble areas around reefs. Juvenilesmimic drifting algae. Feeds primarily on hard-shelled prey, including molluscs and crustaceans. Often seenturning over or moving rocks in quest of invertebrates beneath. Highly territorial, 2 similar sized fishes willfight by grappling with their strong jaws. Taken by hook-and-line or with spear by divers, and occasionallymarketed. Juveniles popular in the aquarium trade.Distribution: Broadly distrib-uted in the Indian Ocean andthe western Central Pacific.

Perciformes: Labroidei: Labridae 3447

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Oxycheilinus arenatus (Valenciennes, 1840)

Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: Cheilinus arenatus Valenciennes, 1840 / Oxycheilinus mentalis(Rüppell, 1828).FAO names: En - Speckled maori wrasse.

Diagnostic characters: Body moderately slender, its depth 2.8 to 3 times in standard length. Head pointed,dorsal profile nearly straight with slight concave inflexion above eye in juveniles and small adults,concave in front of eye in large adults; lower jaw prominent, 2 strong canines situated anteriorl y in eachjaw; no enlarged tooth present on rear of upper jaw; corner of mouth extends rearward to vertical at forwardextent of orbit. Posterior ends of dorsal and anal fins bluntly pointed to rounded; dorsal fin continuous,with IX spines and 10 soft rays, the spines and anterior soft rays of similar length; anal fin with III spinesand 8 soft rays; pectoral fins with ii unbranched and 10 branched rays; pelvic fins short, not reaching to anus;caudal fin truncate to double emarginate, with corners produced into short pointed lobes. Scalysheath extending onto dorsal and anal fins. Lateral line interrupted below posterior portion of dorsal-finbase, with 14 scales on anterior portion and 9 or 10 on peduncular part. Predorsal scales 6, reachingforward to vertical at centre of eye; cheek scales reaching just anterior to forward extent of orbit, broad nakedmargins adjacent to orbit and free preopercular edge; subopercular scales extending anteriorly to verticalat centre of eye. Colour: body light red dorsally, becoming white ventrally with ventral scales fleckedwith red; a dark midlateral stripe on body; head and dorsal part of body finely flecked with small orange-redand some brown dots, the nape and upper body flecked with tiny white dots; dorsal and anal fins translucentwhitish, mottled with light red and marked with irregular whie lines and dots, the dorsal fin with a black spotanteriorly; caudal fin with pinkish white lobes spotted with light red, the central region of fin greenish, shadingto yellowish posteriorly, the caudal-fin rays deep blue-green; pectoral fins pale; pelvic fins white with a broadlight red band near base.Size: Maximum standard length about 16 cm.Habitat, biology, and fisheries: Found on deep water reefs, usually more than 30 m. Feeds primarily onfishes, shrimps, and other crustaceans. This species is not commonly marketed for food, and is not seen inthe aquarium trade.Distribution: Samoa andMarshall Islands, west to theRed Sea.

3448 Bony Fishes

Oxycheilinus digrammus (Lacepède, 1801) (Plate V, 33)

Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: Cheilinus diagrammus (Lacepède, 1801) / None.FAO names: En - Cheeklined maori wrasse.

Diagnostic characters: Body moderately slender, its depth 2.9 to 3.2 times in standard length. Headpointed, dorsal profile nearly straight, slightly concave in front of eye in large adults; lower jawprominent, 2 strong canines anteriorly in each jaw; no enlarged tooth present on rear of upper jaw; cornerof mouth extending rearward to vertical at forward extent of orbit. Posterior ends of dorsal and anal finsbluntly pointed to rounded; dorsal fin continuous, with IX spines and 10 soft rays, the spines and anteriorsoft rays of similar length; anal fin with III spines and 8 soft rays; pectoral fins with ii unbranched and 10branched rays; pelvic fins short, not reaching to anus; caudal fin slightly rounded to truncate, with cornersproduced into short pointed lobes. Scaly sheath extending onto dorsal and anal fins. Lateral line interruptedbelow posterior portion of dorsal-fin base, with 14 to 16 scales on anterior portion and 7 to 9 onpeduncular part; predorsal scales 6, reaching forward to vertical at centre of eye; cheek scales reachingjust anterior to forward extent of orbit, broad naked margins adjacent to orbit and free preopercular edge;subopercular scales extending anteriorly to vertical at centre of eye. Colour: variably coloured, body olivegreen to grey-brown fading to orange red on anteroventral surface, with an orange-red bar or spoton each scale; head grey-green with irregular orange lines on upper part parallel to dorsal profile, radiatingfrom eye, and a series of about 8 diagonal purple lines on lower cheek nearly perpendicular to upperlinear series; large central portion of caudal fin mainly green; may have a narrow longitudinal dark stripe onbody; dorsal and anal fins with 2 or 3 longitudinal lines, alternating orange and blue; pectoral fins largelyclear with light red base; pelvic fins clear distally, proximally orange-red.Size: Maximum standard length about 40 cm.Habitat, biology, and fisheries: Found on coral reefs at depths of 3 to 30 m. Feeds primarily on fishes,shrimps, and other crustaceans. Very curious in response to divers, particulary if the substrate is disturbed.Large individuals of this species are commonly marketed for food, and small individuals are often seen inthe aquarium trade.Distribution: Samoa to Mar-shall Islands, west to the RedSea.

Perciformes: Labroidei: Labridae 3449

Oxycheilinus orientalis (Günther, 1862) (Plate V, 34)

Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / None.FAO names: En - Oriental maori wrasse.

Diagnostic characters: Body slender, its depth 3.3 to 4 times in standard length. Head pointed, dorsalprofile straight in front of eye; lower jaw prominent, 2 strong canines anteriorly in each jaw; no enlargedtooth present on rear of upper jaw; corner of mouth extending rearward to vertical at forward extent of orbit.Posterior ends of dorsal and anal fins bluntly pointed to rounded; dorsal fin continuous, with IX spinesand 10 soft rays, the spines and anterior soft rays of similar length, anal fin with III spines and 8 soft rays,pectoral fins with ii unbranched and 10 branched rays; pelvic fins short, not reaching to anus; caudal finslightly rounded with upper corner slightly produced into thin pointed lobe in some large specimens. Scalysheath extending onto dorsal and anal fins about 1 scale or less. Lateral line interrupted below posteriorportion of dorsal-fin base, with 13 or 14 scales on anterior portion and 7 or 8 on peduncular part.Predorsal scales 6, reaching forward to vertical at centre of eye; cheek scales reaching just anterior toforward extent of orbit, broad naked margins adjacent to orbit and free preopercular edge; subopercularscales extending anteriorly to vertical at centre of eye; lower jaw without scales. Colour: variably coloured,body usually pale whitish to pink with a broad midlateral stripe extending from tip of snout, througheye to caudal peduncle, stripe variable from brown to yellow with a pink border; a prominent blackspot on interspinous membrane of dorsal fin, often edged with yellow; black blotchy spot on lateral linebelow second to fourth dorsal-fin spines; median fins pale translucent white with thin vermiculating red lines,caudal often with a dark blotch at the base; pectoral fins clear, orange-pink at base; pelvic fins clear to slightlypink distally, with darker markings at base. Juvenile head and body pinkish orange; a broad yellow-orangelateral band from snout to base of caudal fin, containing a dusky orange spot below dorsal-fin rays andanother at caudal-fin base; a large blackish blotch on middle of caudal fin.Size: Maximum total length about 15 cm.Habitat, biology, and fisheries: Found on coral reefs at depths of 15 to 80 m, among dense cover of coralrubble or algae. Feeds primarily on fishes, shrimps, and other crustaceans. Curious in response to divers,particulary if the substrate isdisturbed. Large individuals ofthis species are commonlymarketed for food, and smallindividuals may be seen in theaquarium trade.Distribution: Indonesia, Phil-ippines, and Ryukyu Islands toSamoa and Marshall Islands;replaced by the closely relatedCheilinus mentalis in the In-dian Ocean.

3450 Bony Fishes

Oxycheilinus unifasciatus Streets, 1877 (Plate V, 35)

Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: Cheilinus rhodochrous Schultz, 1960 / Oxycheilinus digrammus(Lacepède, 1801).FAO names: En - Ringtail maori wrasse.

Diagnostic characters: Body moderately slender, its depth 2.6 to 3.2 times in standard length. Headpointed, dorsal profile nearly straight, slightly concave in front of eye in large adults; lower jawprominent, 2 strong canines anteriorly in each jaw; no enlarged tooth present on rear of upper jaw; cornerof mouth extends rearward to vertical at forward extent of orbit. Posterior ends of dorsal and anal fins bluntlypointed to rounded; dorsal fin continuous, with IX spines and 10 soft rays, the spines and anterior softrays of similar length; anal fin with III spines and 8 soft rays; pectoral fins with ii unbranched and 10 branchedrays; pelvic fins short, not reaching anus; caudal fin slightly rounded to truncate, with corners producedinto short pointed lobes. Scaly sheath extending onto dorsal and anal fins. Lateral line interrupted belowposterior portion of dorsal-fin base, with 15 or 16 scales on anterior portion and 6 to 9 on peduncularpart. Predorsal scales 6, reaching forward to vertical at centre of eye; cheek scales reaching just anteriorto forward extent of orbit, broad naked margins adjacent to orbit and free preopercular edge; subopercularscales extending anteriorly to vertical at centre of eye. Colour: variable coloured with 2 common patterns:the first pattern is with body dark green to reddish, with an orange-red bar or spot on each scale;head greenish with irregular orange lines on upper part parallel to dorsal profile, radiating from eye, and aseries of 5 or 6 diagonal purple lines on lower cheek; second pattern is reddish on upper three-fifths ofbody and pale white on ventral two-fifths of body, with entire caudal peduncle pale; both colourpatterns exhibit a pale grey to green area behind the eye that is bordered dorsally and ventrally byred lines, and extends rearward slightly ventrally to end on the opercular margin just abovepectoral-fin base; large central portion of caudal fin mainly green; faint to prominent white bar encirclingcaudal peduncle below last dorsal-fin rays; dorsal and anal fins with 2 or 3 longitudinal lines, alternatingorange and blue; pectoral fins largely clear with light pink base; pelvic fins clear distally, proximallyorange-red.Size: Maximum total length about 36 cm.Habitat, biology, and fisher-ies: Found on coral reefs atdepths of 3 to 150 m. A fero-cious predator that feeds pri-marily on fishes, shrimps, andother crustaceans. Large indi-viduals of this species arecommonly marketed for food,and small individuals are oc-casionally seen in the aquar-ium trade.Distribution: Widely distrib-uted in the Indo-Pacific.

Perciformes: Labroidei: Labridae 3451

Paracheilinus filamentosus Allen, 1974

Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / None.FAO names: En - Filamentous wrasse.

Diagnostic characters: Body moderately deep, its depth 3.1 to 3.65 times in standard length. Mouth small,oblique, the maxilla ending anterior to a vertical at front edge of eye; the upper jaw with 3 pairs of enlargedcanines anteriorly, the third (most lateral) pair the largest and curved outward and posteriorly; lowerjaw with a single pair of anterior canines; no canine at corner of mouth. Eye with modified scleral corneaforming a double pupil. Branchiostegal rays 6. First gill arch with 13 to 16 gill rakers. Dorsal fin with IXspines and 11 soft rays, 2 to 6 dorsal-fin rays greatly prolonged into extended filaments; anal fin withIII spines and 9 soft rays; pectoral fins with 14 rays; caudal fin slightly emarginate to strongly lunate,principal caudal-fin rays 13. Lateral line interrupted, with 15 to 17 pored scales on anterior portion and 5 to9 on peduncular part. Head scaly except interorbital space and snout; median predorsal scales 5. Colour:body salmon dorsally, pink ventrally, sides with 6 pink-edged red stripes alternating with yellow;dorsalmost stripe running from just below upper end of gill opening diagonally to fifth lateral-line scale,reappearing on row of scales below lateral line under scale 9 and continuing nearly to caudal-fin base (thisstripe with a median irregular dark bluish line which disappears in about middle of body); second stripe frombeneath opercular flap to about middle of body; third from upper base of pectoral fins to caudal-fin base;fourth from pectoral-fin axil to lower caudal peduncle; fifth from pectoral-fin base across abdomen andextending faintly to rear base of anal fin; sixth across middle of thorax and ending anteriorly on abdomen;head with 3 red stripes with light blue centres except posterior part of lower stripe, the first from snoutcircling upper eye to origin of lateral line, the second from rear of eye to posterior edge of opercle at levelof pectoral-fin base, and the third from posterior upper lip, rimming lower edge of eye, and ending at edgeof subopercle; dorsal fin orange-yellow with a pale blue margin and black submarginal line except whereinterrupted hy filamentous rays; a red band at base of fin (becoming dark bluish anteriorly) which extendsanteriorly onto nape; anal fin red with a pale blue margin; caudal fin red with a clear crescent in medianposterior part of fin with a zone of pale blue on membranes; paired fins pale pink, the pelvic fins with lightblue over spine and first membrane.Size: Maximum total length about 15 cm.Habitat, biology, and fisher-ies: Found over rubble orpatch reefs in areas of current.Specimens have been col-lected in the depth range of 5to 35 m. Feeds on zooplanktonin the water column. Not foundin fish markets, occasionallyseen in the aquarium trade.Distribution: Taiwan Prov-ince of China, Philippines, andIndonesia to Great BarrierReef; west into Indian Ocean.

3452 Bony Fishes

Pseudocheilinops ataenia (Schultz, 1960)

Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / None.FAO names: En - Pelvicspot wrasse.

Diagnostic characters: Body moderately deep, its depth 2.2 to 2.6 times in total length. Snout short, formingan acute angle; maxilla not quite reaching orbit; 2 pairs of canines in upper jaw, the anterior pair nearsymphysis smaller than large lateral pair; 2 pairs similarly in lower jaw, with outer pair largest, no toothat corner of mouth; small, conical teeth in a single row medial to canines in both upper and lower jaws;posterior margin of preopercle serrate. Dorsal fin with IX spines and 11 soft rays; anal fin with IIIspines and 9 soft rays; pectoral fins with ii unbranched and 11 branched rays; pelvic fins large and rounded;caudal fin rounded, branched caudal-fin rays 11. Lateral line interrupted, with 14 or 15 scales in anterior partand 5 to 7 in peduncular part; cheek scaly; predorsal scales 5. Colour: body dull wine red with narrowsulphur yellow stripes; fin rays pale indigo blue; fin membranes pink; pelvic fins with dark blotchy spoton outer half of fin membrane; iris of eye red.Size: Maximum total length about 4.5 cm.Habitat, biology, and fisheries: A small, secretive species with a largely unkown biology. Feeds onamphipods and other small invertebrates. Not found in markets and only rarely in the aquarium trade.Distribution: Indo-Australian,from southern Philippines andSulawesi to Palau.

Perciformes: Labroidei: Labridae 3453

Pseudocheilinus octotaenia (Jenkins, 1900)

Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / None.FAO names: En - Eightlined wrasse.

Diagnostic characters: Body moderately deep, its depth 2.9 to 3.4 times in total length. Snout pointed,moderately long, 2.6 to 2.95 times in head length; 3 large canine teeth on each side at front of upperjaw, the third notably the largest and sharply curved outward and posteriorly; lower jaw with 1 pair oflarge canines anteriorly which fit between first and second pair of large upper teeth when mouth is closed;an inner row of small teeth anteriorly which continues as a single row along sides of jaws. Eye with modifiedscleral cornea forming a double pupil. Dorsal fin with IX spines and 11 soft rays; anal fin with III spinesand 9 soft rays; pectoral fins with ii unbranched and 12 branched rays; caudal fin rounded, branchedcaudal-fin rays 11. Lateral line interrupted, with 17 or 18 scales in anterior part and 6 or 7 in peduncular part.Head scaly except ventrally, on snout, and interorbital; predorsal scales 5. Colour: orange-red with 8narrow dark purple to dark brown stripes on body following scale rows; cheek purplish with yellowspots; median fins yellow with purple bands or small spots; anterior edge of orbit black-lined; dorsal surfaceof head with about 5 dark lines.Size: Maximum total length about 14 cm.Habitat, biology, and fisheries: Found at depths of 2 to 50 m, somewhat cryptic in habits, thus morecommon than underwater observations would indicate. Small benthic crustaceans predominate in the diet,followed by molluscs and echinoids. Planktonic animals such as crab megalops are eaten if they come closeto the bottom.Distribution: Broadly distrib-uted in the Indo-Pacific.

3454 Bony Fishes

Pseudocoris yamashiroi (Schmidt, 1930)

Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / None.FAO names: En - Redspot wrasse.

Diagnostic characters: Body elongate, its depth 4.4 to 4.7 times in standard length. Dorsal profile of headslightly convex; head forming an acute angle; jaws prominent; a single pair of canine teeth anteriorly injaws, following teeth small; no canine at corner of mouth. Dorsal fin continuous, with IX flexible spinesand 12 soft rays; the first 2 dorsal-fin spines in large individuals longer and set closer together thansucceeding spines; anal fin with III flexible spines and 12 soft rays; pectoral fins with 13 rays; pelvic finsshort; caudal fin emarginate. Lateral line abruptly curved below posterior portion of dorsal-fin base,with 69 to 73 pored scales. Scales not reaching onto bases of dorsal and anal fins; head without scales.Colour: initial phase pink and grey, centres of scales darker red than edges; head behind eyeblue-green; a large red spot covering pectoral-fin base; axil of pectoral fins and above blue. Males lightblue-green on dorsal three-fifths of body, densely spotted with vertically elongate black spots; lowertwo-fifths of body bluish white with small yellow spots; head blackish dorsally shading to blue-grey onside and to blue ventrally; caudal fin black with a large white semicircular area centrally and posteriorly infin. Juveniles with pale blue-green lines, the major one starting at front of snout, passing over eye, andalong upper part of body; a second one from mouth, across cheek, and along lower side of body.Size: Maximum total length about 15 cm.Habitat, biology, and fisheries: Occurs in aggregations over shallow reefs and on reef flats where it feedson zooplankton. Rarely found in markets, and only occasionally in the aquarium trade.Distribution: Micronesia andSamoa to western Pacific.

terminal phase

Perciformes: Labroidei: Labridae 3455

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