Red-tailed Halfbar Wrasse, Decodon erythroleukos Kanai, Menkara, Nishioka, Chen, Motomura & Tea 2025

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Bray, D.J. 2025, Decodon erythroleukos in Fishes of Australia, accessed 25 Jun 2026, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/5789

Red-tailed Halfbar Wrasse, Decodon erythroleukos Kanai, Menkara, Nishioka, Chen, Motomura & Tea 2025

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Distribution	Jewell Reef, Great Barrier Reef, Queensland. Elsewhere the species is known from New Caledonia and the Ryukyu Islands, Japan. In Australia, the species inhabits rubble areas on the outer reef slope.
Features	Lateral line pored scales 27-30, scales above lateral line 3, scales below lateral line 8; Predorsal scales approximately 20; Circumpeduncular scales 15-18, scales above lateral line 3, scales below lateral line 8. Body depth 3.5-4.3 in SL; head length 2.9-3.1 in SL; Snout length 3.0-4.0 in HL; Orbit diameter 2.5-3.7 in HL; Caudal-peduncle length 1.7-2.5 in HL.
Colour	Fresh coloration: upper portion of head and nape scarlet; head with a yellow stripe from snout with a horizontal lemon-yellow stripe at horizontal level of posterior nostril and orbit, continuing past orbit as a dull yellow stripe to free edge of operculum; terminal-phase males pale orange dorsally, fading to pale orange cream ventrally; dorsal fin translucent red; caudal fin bone-white on proximal two-thirds, abruptly scarlet on distal third; initial-phased specimens with up to seven silvery white bars on side of body, usually confined to dorsal half (bars very reduced to absent in terminal-phased males)
Etymology	The specific name is from the Greek erythros (= red) and leukos (= white), in reference to the unique caudal-fin colouration and barred body pattern of this species.
Species Citation	Decodon erythroleukos Kanai, Menkara, Nishioka, Chen, Motomura & Tea 2025, Journal of Fish Biology: 1-16 (Online Early). Type locality: 7.5 km west of Sunabe Baba Park, Chatan, Nakagami, Okinawa Island, Okinawa Islands, Ryukyu Islands, Japan (26°19041.100 N, 127°39052.500 E).
Author	Bray, D.J. 2025
Resources	Atlas of Living Australia Australian Faunal Directory Catalog of Fishes

Red-tailed Halfbar Wrasse, Decodon erythroleukos Kanai, Menkara, Nishioka, Chen, Motomura & Tea 2025

References

Kanai, S., Menkara, Y., Nishioka, T., Chen, W.-J., Motomura, H. & Tea, Y.-K. 2025. Decodon erythroleukos, a new deepwater species of hypsigenyin wrasse (Teleostei: Labridae) from the western Pacific Ocean. Journal of Fish Biology https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.70262

Tea, Y. K., Sih, T. L., Walsh, F., Bennett, T., et al. 2025. New records of fishes from the Coral Sea Marine Park, Australia. Coral Reefs 44: 1227-1273. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-025-02664-3