Pixy Wrasse, Coris pictoides Randall & Kuiter 1982

Other Names: Blackstripe Coris, Black-striped Wrasse, Pixie Coris, Pixy Rainbow-wrasse

A Pixy Wrasse, Coris pictoides, at Komodo, Manggarai, Nusa Tenggara Timur, Indonesia. Source: Mark Rosenstein / iNaturalist. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

Summary:

A whitish wrasse with a broad black stripe along the upper sides containing a narrow white stripe, yellow fins and a yellow iris. Male are yellowish below and have a reddish basal stripe on the dorsal fin and caudal-fin base. Juveniles have a large blue and black ocellus on the dorsal fin.

Cite this page as:

Dianne J. Bray, Coris pictoides in Fishes of Australia, accessed 21 Jan 2025, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/2285

Pixy Wrasse, Coris pictoides Randall & Kuiter 1982

More Info

Distribution	Recorded in Australia from the Dampier Archipelago, Monte Bello Islands, and Rowley Shoals, WA, and Ashmore Reef, Timor Sea, to Sydney, NSW, and Elizabeth and Middleton Reefs, Tasman Sea. Found elsewhere in the West-Pacific from Taiwan, Philippines, Indonesia, Australia and New Caledonia. Inhabits sandy and rubble areas near reefs and in shallow estuaries and lagoons, although the species is at depths below 20 m.
Features	Meristic features: Dorsal fin IX, 12; Anal fin III, 12; Vertebrae 25.
Author	Dianne J. Bray

Pixy Wrasse, Coris pictoides Randall & Kuiter 1982

References

Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 292 pp. 106 pls.

Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp.

Allen, G.R. & Swainston, R. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A field guide for anglers and divers. Perth, WA : Western Australian Museum vi 201 pp., 70 pls.

Choat, J.H., van Herwerden, L., Robbins, W.D., Hobbs, J.P. & Ayling, A.M. 2006. A report on the ecological surveys undertaken at Middleton and Elizabeth Reefs, February 2006. Report by James Cook University to the Department of the Environment and Heritage. 65 pp.
Craig, M.T. 2010. Coris pictoides. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. . Downloaded on 15 September 2014.

Hutchins, J.B. 2001. Biodiversity of shallow reef fish assemblages in Western Australia using a rapid censusing technique. Records of the Western Australian Museum 20: 247-270.

Kuiter, R.H. 1993. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 437 pp.

Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. A comprehensive reference for divers and fishermen. Sydney, NSW, Australia : New Holland Publishers xvii, 434 pp.

Kuiter, R.H. 2002. Fairy & Rainbow Wrasses and their Relatives. Chorleywood, U.K. : TMC Publishing 207 pp.

Oxley, W.G., Ayling, A.M., Cheal, A.J. & Osborne, K. 2004. Marine surveys undertaken in the Elizabeth and Middleton Reefs Marine National Nature Reserve, December 2003. Townsville : Australian Institute of Marine Sciences 64 pp.

Randall, J.E. 1999. Revision of the Indo-Pacific labrid fishes of the genus Coris, with descriptions of five new species. Indo-Pacific Fishes 29: 1-74 pls 1-7 pls 1-22

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1990. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 507 pp. figs.

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 557 pp. figs.

Randall, J.E. & Kuiter, R.H. 1982. Three new labrid fishes of the genus Coris from the western Pacific. Pacific Science 36(2): 159-173 figs 1-5

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.