Labridae

Humphead wrasse

Cheilinus undulatus

A towering forehead through coral reefs

• Blue
• Green
• Cross-climate
• Subtropical
• Tropical
• Regional distribution
• Marine fish
• Fusiform
• Compressed cross-section
• Large
• Tropical fish

Revered as the monarch of the coral realm, the humphead wrasse is a giant labrid distinguished by a monumental cranial protrusion that grows prominently with age. Heavy fleshy lips, intricate olive-to-cyan scale patterns, and wavy facial lines resembling traditional tattoos give this massive fish an imposing presence. Distributed across the tropical Indo-Pacific from the Red Sea and East Africa to French Polynesia and the Ryukyu Islands, it frequents steep outer reef slopes, drop-offs, and deep lagoon passes between two and sixty meters depth. Unlike smaller relatives, its immense pharyngeal bones allow it to crush heavily armored prey, including sea urchins, toxic crown-of-thorns starfish, thick-shelled gastropods, and crustaceans that few other reef dwellers can tackle. Solitary adults cruise along deep reef walls during the day and seek shelter in limestone caverns at night. Long-lived individuals may survive beyond thirty years, transitioning from female to male later in life as protogynous hermaphrodites, and reaching impressive maximum recorded lengths up to two hundred and twenty-nine centimetres.

Sources: NOAA Fisheries — Humphead Wrasse