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Purple Wrasse
Notolabrus fucicola (Richardson, 1840)
A Purple Wrasse at a depth of 37m, Montague Island, New South Wales, September 2002. View larger image.
The Purple Wrasse is greenish-blue, brown or purplish with five yellow to white blotches along the upper sides.
This species grows to 45cm in length.
It occurs on rocky reefs in temperate coastal waters of Australia and New Zealand.
In Australia it is known from southern New South Wales and around the south of the country to eastern South Australia.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
Further reading
- Edgar, G.J. 1997. Australian Marine Life: the plants and animals of temperate waters. Reed Books. Pp. 544.
- Russell, B.C & M.F. Gomon. in Gomon, M.F., Glover, C.J.M. & 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. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. Pp. 437.
