Fish
Cuckoo Wrasse
Labrus mixtus
Over a kelp-covered reef off the Atlantic coast, a male cuckoo wrasse glows blue and orange beside a drabber, spotted female that he may once have been like.
Overview
The cuckoo wrasse, Labrus mixtus, is a Least Concern wrasse of rocky reefs and kelp forests across the north-eastern Atlantic. Its two strikingly different colour forms make it one of the most colourful fish in British and Irish waters.
A wrasse with two faces
Because every male starts life as a female, a reef population of cuckoo wrasse contains both orange, spotted fish and blue-headed ones that are in fact the older, larger members of the same group.
Status
Least Concern, widespread on suitable reefs.
Cuckoo Wrasse: common questions
Why do cuckoo wrasse look so different?
The females are orange with dark blotches, while the males have a blue head and an orange to yellow body with blue stripes, because females change into males as they grow.
Where does the cuckoo wrasse live?
It lives on rocky reefs and around kelp forests in the north-eastern Atlantic, in deeper water than most other wrasses.
What does the cuckoo wrasse eat?
It eats crabs, shrimps, brittle stars, small molluscs, and other animals on the reef.
How big is the cuckoo wrasse?
It usually reaches around 25 to 35 cm in length.