Crimsonband Wrasse, Notolabrus gymnogenis (Günther 1862)

Other Names: Crimson-banded Parrot-fish, Crimson-banded Wrasse, Spotted Rainbowfish, White-spotted Rainbow-fish

A male Crimsonband Wrasse, Notolabrus gymnogenis, at South Solitary Island, New South Wales. Source: Ian V. Shaw / Reef Life Survey. License: CC BY Attribution

Summary:

Juveniles are greenish brown with rows of white spots along the sides. Females are reddish to brownish-orange with rows of white spots along the sides. Males are strikingly coloured with red dorsal and anal fins, a red band around the rear of the body, a white caudal peduncle and a yellow caudal fin.

Video of a male Crimsonband Wrasse at Shelly Beach (Manly), New South Wales.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2024, Notolabrus gymnogenis in Fishes of Australia, accessed 28 Apr 2025, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/254

Crimsonband Wrasse, Notolabrus gymnogenis (Günther 1862)

More Info

Distribution	Endemic to eastern Australia, from Hervey Bay, Queensland, to Lakes Entrance, Victoria, and the Kent Group, Bass Strait, Tasmania; also the Lord Howe Province in the Tasman Sea. Commonly inhabits exposed and moderately exposed kelp-covered reefs in New South Wales.
Feeding	Carnivore - feeds mostly on benthic invertebrates. Juveniles mostly consume amphipods, whereas larger fish prey on decapod crustaceans, and gastropod and bivalve molluscs.
Biology	A protogynous hermaphrodite - individuals change sex from female to male at about 5 years and a length of about 260-280 mm TL. Spawning occurs from April to October, and the eggs and larvae are pelagic.
Fisheries	Fished on a small scale commercially and recreationally.
Conservation	IUCN Red List : Least Concern
Remarks	Adult males are highly territorial, and may defend their reef from other males for more than two years. They live in a harem, sharing their territory with up to 10 juvenile and female individuals.
Etymology	The specific name gymnogenis is from the Greek gymnos (= bare) and genys (= cheek), in reference to the fact that the cheeks are almost naked, having only a single row of scales.
Species Citation	Labrichthys gymnogenis Günther, 1862, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus.4: 117, 507. Type locality: Sydney, New South Wales.
Author	Bray, D.J. 2024
Resources	Atlas of Living Australia Australian Faunal Directory Catalog of Fishes

Crimsonband Wrasse, Notolabrus gymnogenis (Günther 1862)

References

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Francis, M. 1993. Checklist of the coastal fishes of Lord Howe, Norfolk, and Kermadec Islands, southwest Pacific Ocean. Pacific Science 47(2): 136-170 figs 1-2

Günther, A. 1862. Catalogue of the Fishes in the British Museum. Catalogue of the Acanthopterygii Pharyngognathi and Anacanthini in the collection of the British Museum. London : British Museum Vol. 4 534 pp. See ref at BHL

Johnson, J.W. 1999. Annotated checklist of the fishes of Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 43(2): 709-762

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

Kuiter, R.H. 1997. Guide to sea fishes of Australia. A comprehensive reference for divers and fishermen. Frenchs Forest, NSW, Australia : New Holland Publishers I-xvii, 434 pp.

Last, P.L., White, W.T., Gledhill, D.C., Hobday, A.J., et al. 2011. Long-term shifts in abundance and distribution of a temperate fish fauna: a response to climate change and fishing practices. Global Ecology and Biogeography 20: 58–72

Macleay, W.J. 1878. Descriptions of some new fishes from Port Jackson and King George's Sound. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 1 3(1): 33-37 pls 2-5 [described as Labrichthys nigromarginatus, type locality Port Jackson, New South Wales]

Marshall, T.C. 1964. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coastal Waters of Queensland. Sydney : Angus & Robertson 566 pp. 136 pls.

McPherson, G.R. 1977. Sex change in the wrasse Pseudolabrus gymnogenis (Labridae). Australian Zoologist 19: 185-200.

Morton, J.K., Gladstone, W. Hughes, J.M. & Stewart, J. 2008. Comparison of the life histories of three co-occurring wrasses (Teleostei: Labridae) in coastal waters of south-eastern Australia. Marine and Freshwater Research 59(7): 560-574.

Morton, J.K., Platell, M.E. & Gladstone, W. 2008. Differences in feeding ecology among three co-occurring species of wrasse (Teleostei: Labridae) on rocky reefs of temperate Australia. Marine Biology 154: 577–592.

Roughley, T.C. 1957. Fish and Fisheries of Australia. Sydney : Angus & Robertson 341 pp.

Russell, B.C. 1988. Revision of the labrid fish genus Pseudolabrus and allied genera. Records of the Australian Museum, Supplement 9: 1-72. https://doi.org/10.3853/j.0812-7387.9.1988.95

Russell, B. 2010. Notolabrus gymnogenis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010: e.T187633A8586162. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T187633A8586162.en. Accessed on 12 February 2024.

Thomson, J.M. 1978. A Field Guide to the Common Sea & Estuary Fishes of Non-tropical Australia. Sydney : Collins 144 pp.

Waite, E.R. 1903. Additions to the fish-fauna of Lord Howe Island. No. 3. Records of the Australian Museum 5(1): 20-45 figs 1-2 pls 3-5