Moon wrasse

Colorful wrasse.

Scientific name	Thalassoma lunare
English name	Moon wrasse
Japanese name	乙女倍良
Classification	Actinopterygii
Classification details	Perciformes Labridae
Full length	Most individuals are 15-20cm.
Distribution	Indo-Pacific. Found in Japan south of Chiba Prefecture.

Characteristics

A wrasse with a colorful body color of blue and green.

The male is a vivid blue all over. The female is mainly green, but it is more flashy than the Honbera.

The head has a light blue and purple to red pattern, and the caudal fin is yellow. The pectoral fin is also red to pink with a blue border, making it very noticeable.

Ecology

It lives on reefs and eats small animals. When a human touches a reef and small pieces fly up, they are lured and gather around.

It has a territory and swims around busily. It can also be seen chasing other small fish.

Habitat

Arasaki, Miura Peninsula

Discovered on a relatively shallow reef in Araki. It was wandering around its territory, but it moved quickly and I had a hard time photographing it. It was a beautiful specimen with vivid colors.

It is quite common to see it in Araki, Miura Peninsula, but in terms of population, it seems that the order of abundance is dwarf wrasse > Japanese wrasse > maiden wrasse.