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Eastern King Wrasse
Coris sandeyeri Phillips, 1927
An adult male Eastern King Wrasse at Lighthouse Reef, Ulladulla, New South Wales. Photo © Á. Lumnitzer.
The Eastern King Wrasse has very small scales and a distinctive colour pattern. Like many wrasses (Family Labridae) the colour pattern changes with growth.
The Eastern King Wrasse grows to 45 cm in length.
It is usually seen in depths between 20 m and 40 m near weed-covered reefs.
This species is occurs from Broughton Island, New South Wales to eastern Victoria.
The closely-related Western King Wrasse, Coris auricularis, is known from the Recherche Archipelago to Shark Bay, Western Australia. These two species can be separated by differences in colouration.
Further Reading
- Gomon, M.F. & B.C. Russell in Gomon, M.F., C.J.M. Glover & R.H. Kuiter (Eds). 1994. The Fishes of Australia's South Coast. State Print, Adelaide. Pp. 992.
- Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
- Kuiter, R.H. 1993. Coastal Fishes of South-Eastern Australia. Crawford House Press. Pp. 437.
