Wrasse ID

[ttbuc40]

 

[ttbuc40]

I was sold this as a cresent tail fairy wrasse but it doeant seem to match any pictures I can find online. I mainly want to id it to make sure it is reef safe. Any help is appreciated. Thanks

 

[Mid_Reefkeeper]

Pretty certain it’s not a Cirrhilabrus (fairy wrasse)

Could be one of the less common Halichoeres or Cheilinus??

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Can you get photos under white lights?

Looks like one of the Cheilinus wrasses, but I can’t tell which one.

 

[ttbuc40]

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Wrasses are tough for me to ID. I'm no expert on them, and they are so highly variable - it seems each fish has a different color pattern! The color pattern varies with size, sex and the conditions they are kept in.

With yours, I can see four vague spots in a line on its side. To me, that most resemble the Snooty Wrasse, Cheilinus oxycephalus. I've never kept one in a reef. They will eat shrimp and crabs, I doubt that they will feed on corals though.

 

[ReneReef]

I’d say this is an Oxycheilinus bimaculatus.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

I’d say this is an Oxycheilinus bimaculatus.

I agree - the elongate upper edge to the dorsal fin is the way to tell these apart I think......

 

[ttbuc40]

Thanks all, I think you nailed it. Sounds like he is a shrimp and crab eater though and might need to go.

 

[ReneReef]

I agree - the elongate upper edge to the dorsal fin is the way to tell these apart I think......

And the line of the fore head to the mouth.
In Cheilinus it is strait to concave and in Oxycheilinus convex.

Also I think O. bimaculatus is the most commonly imported out of these genuses, so statistically a good bet

Thanks all, I think you nailed it. Sounds like he is a shrimp and crab eater though and might need to go.

Seems like an awesome fish. You could also choose to skip the shrimps and crabs… And maybe some snails…

There are people keeping harlequin tusks in reef tanks… They get quite a bit bigger than this Oxycheilinus.