Brownspotted Wrasse

Interesting Info

• The Brownspotted Wrasse is a temperate reef fish found in southern Australia, ranging from Shark Bay in Western Australia across to New South Wales, including Tasmania. It is especially common in South Australia and Victoria, where kelp-covered reefs dominate.
• Males are brightly coloured, with a reddish-brown to orange body covered in bold brown spots, bluish-green highlights on the head and fins, and a yellowish tinge on the tail. Females and juveniles are more subdued, often greenish-brown or olive with fine spotting.
• Juveniles usually appear mottled brown or olive and hide in seagrass beds or weedy reef zones, where their camouflage helps them avoid predators until they mature.
• Like many wrasses, Brownspotted Wrasses are protogynous hermaphrodites, beginning life as females before some change into dominant males, usually once they grow larger and secure a territory.
• They feed on a variety of benthic invertebrates, using strong jaws and teeth to crush crabs, shrimps, molluscs, sea urchins, and worms, as well as scraping small animals from algae and rocks.
• Brownspotted Wrasses prefer rocky reefs with abundant kelp and macroalgae, where they patrol crevices and sand patches in search of prey. They are often seen in the surge zone or shallow reef tops where food is plentiful.
• Males are territorial, defending patches of reef and courting females with bright colour displays and fin flaring during the breeding season.
• Spawning occurs in pairs in the water column during spring and summer, with eggs released to drift with the currents until they hatch into larvae.
• Their lifespan is thought to be around 7–10 years.
• At night they wedge into rocky crevices or under kelp holdfasts for safety, sometimes darkening their colour for camouflage.