Knife Wrasse, Cymolutes praetextatus (Quoy & Gaimard 1834)

Other Names: Knife Razorfish, Knife Razorwrasse, Knifefish, Razon Wrasse

A Knife Wrasse, Cymolutes praetextatus, at Kingston, Norfolk Island, October 2016. Source: mscott / iNaturalist.org. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial

Summary:

A pale wrasse with a steep head profile, faint bars along the side, a white stripe along back above a broad, yellowish or darker stripe (that may be absent).This wary wrasse dives into the sand when threatened.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2019, Cymolutes praetextatus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 19 Apr 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/224

Knife Wrasse, Cymolutes praetextatus (Quoy & Gaimard 1834)

More Info

Distribution	Ningaloo Reef, Rowley Shoals and Scott Reef, Western Australia, Ashmore Reef in the Timor Sea, and the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland; also Norfolk Island in the Tasman Sea and Cocos (Keeling) Islands in the eastern Indian Ocean. Elsewhere the species is widespread in the Indo-west-central Pacific from Africa eastwards to the Society Islands, Line Islands and Hawaii. Inhabits reef flats and shallow lagoons, preferring shallow sandy, current-swept areas and sparse seagrass beds. Knife Wrasse dive into the sand when threatened.
Species Citation	Julis praetextata Quoy & Gaimard 1834. Voyage de découvertes de "l'Astrolabe" Zoologie 3(2): 712, pl. 15(4). Type locality: Mauritius.
Author	Bray, D.J. 2019
Resources	Atlas of Living Australia Australian Faunal Directory Catalog of Fishes

Knife Wrasse, Cymolutes praetextatus (Quoy & Gaimard 1834)

References

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Allen, G.R. & Russell, B.C. 1986. Part VII Fishes. pp. 79-103 in Berry, P.F. (ed.) Faunal Surveys of the Rowley Shoals, Scott Reef and Seringapatam Reef, northwestern Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 25: 1-106

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Quoy, J.R.C. & Gaimard, J.P. 1834. Poissons. In: Voyage de découvertes de "l'Astrolabe," exécuté par ordre du Roi, pendant les années 1826-29, sous le commandement de M. J. Dumont d'Urville. Paris. Zoologie, v. 3 (Pt 2): 645-720, Pls. 1-4, 7, 10-12, 14, +.

Randall, J.E. 2005. Reef and shore fishes of the South Pacific. New Caledonia to Tahiti and the Pitcairn Islands. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, Hawaii. 720 pp.

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Randall, J.E., Langston, R.C. & Severns, M. 2006. First Record of the Labrid Fish Cymolutes praetextatus from the Hawaiian Islands. Pacific Science 60(4): 549-553.

Russell, B. 2010. Cymolutes praetextatus . The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010: e.T187681A8599271. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T187681A8599271.en. Downloaded on 16 December 2019.

Westneat, M.W. 2001. Labridae. pp. 3381-3467 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, T.H. (eds) The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 6 pp. 3381-4218.