Melanurus Wrasse

The Melanurus Wrasse is a busy reef forager with blue-green colouring crossed by pink or yellow lines. Younger fish can look less vivid, so the colour of an adult reference image should not be treated as a promise about a juvenile.

A soft sand bed is essential for this wrasse to bury itself when resting or frightened. Leave swimming room above the rockwork and fit a close-fitting lid, including around cables and overflows.

Offer small meaty meals such as mysis alongside suitable marine pellets or flakes. Its appetite for small invertebrates can include ornamental shrimp and feather dusters as well as unwanted worms; choose tankmates with that predatory behaviour in mind.