Bleeding wrasse
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Labriformes
Family: Labridae
Genus: Polylepion
Species:
P. cruentum
Binomial name
Polylepion cruentum
Gomon, 1977

The bleeding wrasse (Polylepion cruentum) is a species of marine ray-finned fish from the family Labridae, the wrasses. It is found in reefs in the eastern central Pacific Ocean.

Description

The bleeding wrasse is relatively slender for a wrasse and its body tapers noticeably towards its tail. It has large eyes and a horizontal mouth which reaches to the eye, in front of the pupil.[2] The largest males have been measured at a total length of 24 centimetres (9.4 in).[3] The adults are red on their heads and upper body with a whitish underside, there are three or four yellow horizontal stripes on the upper flanks and curved yellow stripes on the head. The spiny part of the dorsal fin is black[1] with two pink stripes in the rear portion of that fin and a yellow margin. The anal fin is white with a wide yellow edge, the pelvic fins are also white and the pectoral fins are transparent but have a wide blood-red bar at their base. At the base of the dorsal lobe of the caudal fin there is a large oval-shaped red spot which becomes indistinct in the biggest fish.[2] The juveniles are pink in colour with more yellow stripes than the adults and a large black blotch on dorsal part of the caudal peduncle.[1]

Distribution

The bleeding wrasse is found in the central eastern Pacific Ocean from Mexico to Nicaragua, including the Cocos Islands of Costa Rica.[1] Its range may extend south as far as Colombia and Ecuador.[2]

Habitat and biology

The bleeding wrasse is found at depths of 150–200 metres (490–660 ft) over areas with a sandy substrate near gravel and rocky reefs.[3] It feeds on gastropods, bivalves, crustaceans and worms.[2] It is an oviparous species which pais during spawning[3] and the eggs and larvae are pelagic.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Bertoncini, A. (2010). "Polylepion cruentum". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2010: e.T187725A8613802. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T187725A8613802.en. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Species: Polylepion cruentum, Bleeding wrasse". The Shorefishes. Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2019). "Polylepion cruentum" in FishBase. August 2019 version.
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