Orangefin Wrasse, Halichoeres melanochir Fowler & Bean 1928

Other Names: Orange-fin Wrasse, Purple Wrasse

An Orangefin Wrasse, Halichoeres melanochir, at Mornington Island, Wellesley Islands, Gulf of Carpentaria, Queensland. Source: Rick Stuart-Smith / Reef Life Survey. License: CC BY Attribution

Summary:

A bluish to purplish wrasse becoming yellowish towards the rear of the body, with fine black spots along the head and body, a large black spot covering the pectoral-fin base, a pale patch on teh caudal-fin base, yellowish caudal and pectoral fins, yellowish-orange pelvic fins, and a small black spot on the upper part of the tail base. Juveniles are bluish with darker and paler stripes along the side, a large black spot covering the pectoral-fin base, an ocellus on the front of the dorsal fin, another on the middle of the fin, and a small ocellus on upper part of the tail base.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2019, Halichoeres melanochir in Fishes of Australia, accessed 19 Apr 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/2292

Orangefin Wrasse, Halichoeres melanochir Fowler & Bean 1928

More Info

Distribution	Coral Bay, Western Australia, northwards to the Gulf of Carpentaria, Queensland. Elsewhere the species occurs in the tropical, east-Indo-west Pacific. Individuals, pairs, or occasionally small groups inhabit sandy-rubble areas on coral reefs to about 30 m.
Features	Dorsal fin IX, 12; Anal fin III, 12; Pectoral fin 14; Lateral-line scales 27. Body depths 3.1-3.6 in SL.
Species Citation	Halichoeres melanochir Fowler & Bean 1928, Bulletin of the United States National Museum 100(7): 264. Type locality: Lampinigan Island, Philippines.
Author	Bray, D.J. 2019
Resources	Australian Faunal Directory

Orangefin Wrasse, Halichoeres melanochir Fowler & Bean 1928

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. 2000. Fishes of the Montebello Islands. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 59: 47-57

Allen, G.R. 2009. Field Guide to Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-East Asia. Welshpool : Western Australian Museum Edn. 4, pp. 287.

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.

Craig, M. & Rocha, L. 2010. Halichoeres melanochir. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010: e.T187694A8603052. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T187694A8603052.en. Downloaded on 10 February 2019.

Fowler, H.W. & Bean, B.A. 1928. Contributions to the biology of the Philippine Archipelago and adjacent regions. The fishes of the families Pomacentridae, Labridae and Callyodontidae, collected by the United States Bureau of Fisheries Steamer Albatross, chiefly in Philippine seas and adjacent waters. Bulletin of the United States National Museum 100(7): 1-525 pls 1-49

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

Hutchins, J.B. 2003. Checklist of marine fishes of the Dampier Archipelago, Western Australia. pp. 453-478 in Wells, F.E., Walker, D.I., & Jones, D.S. (eds). Proceedings of the Eleventh International Marine Biological Workshop: The Marine Flora and Fauna of Dampier, Western Australia. Perth : Western Australian Museum.

Johnson, J.W. & Gill, A.C. 2005. Reef and shore fishes of Sweers Island, Gulf of Carpentaria. Gulf of Carpentaria Scientific Study Report. Geography Monograph Series. Brisbane: Royal Geographic Society of Queensland. pp. 239-260

Kuiter, R.H. 1992. Tropical Reef-Fishes of the Western Pacific, Indonesia and Adjacent Waters. Jakarta : PT Gramedia Pustaka Utama 314 pp. pls.

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

Kuiter, R.H. 2010. Labridae fishes: wrasses. Seaford, Victoria, Australia : Aquatic Photographics 398 pp. (as Julichoeres melanochir)

Larson, H.K., Williams, R.S. & Hammer, M.P. 2013. An annotated checklist of the fishes of the Northern Territory, Australia. Zootaxa 3696(1): 1-293

Moore, G.I., Morrison, S.M., Hutchins, B.J., Allen, G.R. & Sampey, A. 2014. Kimberley marine biota. Historical data: fishes. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 84: 161-206

Craig, M. & Rocha, L. 2010. Halichoeres melanochir. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2015.2. . Downloaded on 30 July 2015.