Tropical reef fish
Identity card
Indo-Pacific, Red Sea and East Africa. Eastern Indian Ocean to Polynesia.
Near coral reefs, close to Acropora coral, between 0 and 40 metres.
10 cm, max: 14 cm
Parasites and mucus from other fish.
The fish go to the cleaning station to have their mouths and gills inspected.
This removes any food debris or dead skin. Acting as both dentist and doctor, the cleaner wrasse is not afraid to enter the moray eel's mouth to perform its work.
However, we must be wary of imitations. A certain Aspidontus taeniatus resembles the cleaner wrasse and behaves like it, but does not hesitate to bite its client and tear off a piece of its fin.
It is found in the Indo-Pacific, the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea and East Africa, north to southern Japan.
It is characterised by a long, tapered body, blue in colour with a black line running along its length, from mouth to tail.
Its small mouth is protractile and equipped with several rows of small, sharp teeth.
Its colouring and behaviour are recognised by other fish, which do not consider it as potential prey but as a 'service provider'.
Solitary during its juvenile period, it then lives in groups or pairs as an adult.
All individuals are born female.
It is a fish that lives in a harem with a dominant male surrounded by females and juveniles. When the male dies, the dominant female takes his place after completing her transformation, which takes 14 to 18 days.
It is a monandrous species, meaning that the female mates with only one male.
It feeds only on parasites found on its neighbours. It therefore needs the presence of other fish to survive. It can clean up to 2,000 fish per day.
There are no specific conservation measures for this species.
Mankind and shores
The Ocean Mag
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