Whiteblotch Razorfish

Interesting Info

• The Whiteblotch Razorfish, is a reef-associated wrasse found across the tropical Indo-Pacific, including northern Australia on the Great Barrier Reef, Coral Sea, and offshore islands such as Christmas and Cocos (Keeling).
• Adults are named for the distinct pale white blotch on the middle of their body, set against a greenish to brown background with irregular darker markings.
• They are part of the “razorfish” group, known for their tall, laterally compressed bodies and sharp dorsal fins that make them look blade-like underwater.
• Juveniles often mimic floating debris, drifting in the water column and swaying like a leaf to avoid predators until they settle onto sandy reef areas.
• When startled, both juveniles and adults dive straight into sand and vanish in seconds — one of the most famous survival tricks of razorfish.
• Their diet is made up of small benthic invertebrates, including crustaceans, worms, and molluscs, which they snap up while foraging across sandy and rubble bottoms.
• Like other wrasses, they are protogynous hermaphrodites, starting life as females before some transition into males as they grow larger.
• Spawning occurs in the open water column, with fertilised eggs drifting as plankton before hatching into larvae.
• They are diurnal, active by day and burying themselves at night to avoid nocturnal predators like moray eels and snappers.
• The lifespan of Whiteblotch Razorfish is thought to be about 5–7 years in the wild, similar to other medium-sized razorfish species.
• The species name aneiteensis comes from Aneityum (formerly Aneiteum), an island in Vanuatu where the species was first described.