About Cirrhilabrus exquisitus Smith, 1957
This species, commonly called the exquisite wrasse, has a body colour that ranges from greenish to reddish overall, and shows complex colour patterning. Adult males are olive-green on their dorsal side, fading to white, pale blue, or pink on the underparts. They have an oval dark spot on the caudal peduncle, whose bottom margin touches the lateral line. One frequently interrupted blue line runs from under the pectoral fin to the spot on the tail base. A second blue line runs from the corner of the mouth to a position above the eye, then continues along the base of the dorsal fin. A second blue line on the head runs from the posterior edge of the eye until it breaks up above the pectoral fin. A third blue line runs from the rear of the mouth to just above the pectoral-fin base. The base of the pectoral fin has a black bar edged with blue, while the margin of this fin is red. All fins have variable amounts of red in their middle portions. Juveniles and smaller females are reddish, with a blue-margined black oval spot on the caudal peduncle and a white spot at the tip of the snout. Exquisite wrasse colouration varies geographically. Males can reach a maximum standard length of 12 centimetres (4.7 in). The exquisite wrasse is distributed from the eastern coast of Africa, as far south as South Africa's Sodwana Bay, east through the Indian Ocean to Australia, and into the Pacific Ocean as far east as the Tuamotus, French Polynesia. It ranges north as far as the Ryukyu Islands, and south as far as the northern Great Barrier Reef. This wrasse lives in areas with rubble or low reef patches that have strong currents. It is also found on reef edges and around exposed reef outcrops within rubble areas. It can form reasonably large mixed-sex groups when feeding on zooplankton high above the seabed. Males often display to one another. Researchers believe the species may have an association with the mushroom coral Heliofungia actiniformis. Exquisite wrasse are protogynous hermaphrodites: when individuals transform from females to males, males develop larger body size, longer more pointed fins, and more colourful body patterns. This species is collected for the aquarium trade, and has not yet been bred in captivity.
