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Nebulous Wrasse
Halichoeres nebulosus (Valenciennes, 1830)
A Nebulous Wrasse at a depth of 23m, North Solitary Island, New South Wales, July 2001. View larger image.
The Nebulous Wrasse is classified in the family Labridae. It looks similar to several other species of Halichoeres (especially the Pink-belly Wrasse H.margaritaceus), but can usually be separated by cheek colouration.
Adult Nebulous Wrasse have a boomerang-shaped pinkish mark on the cheek. The fish in the image is a juvenile in which the anterior part of the boomerang marking is indistinct but the descending posterior region is visible.
The Nebulous Wrasse grows to 12cm in length.
This species is found on coral and rocky reefs. It occurs widely in tropical marine waters and some temperate waters of the Indo-West Pacific.
In Australia it occurs off north-western Western Australia and from the northern Great Barrier Reef to the central coast of New South Wales.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
Further reading
- Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 292.
- Allen, G.R. & R. Swainston. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 201.
- Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
- Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. New Holland. Pp. 433.
- Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. Pp. 437.
- Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & R.C. Steene. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Crawford House Press. Pp. 557.
