''Halichoeres leucurus'' is a
marine fish commonly known as greyhead wrasse, chainline wrasse, sand-reef wrasse or silty wrasse.
They are harmless to humans and have a size of around –.
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Dispersion
''Halichoeres leucurus'' lives in the Western Pacific, specifically from the Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
to New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu
Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea).
It is a simplified version of ...
and from the Yaeyama Islands
The Yaeyama Islands (八重山列島 ''Yaeyama-rettō'', also 八重山諸島 ''Yaeyama-shotō'', Yaeyama: ''Yaima'', Yonaguni: ''Daama'', Okinawan: ''Yeema'', Northern Ryukyuan: ''Yapema'') are an archipelago in the southwest of Okinawa ...
to southern Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
.
Biology
''Halichoeres leucurus'' can be found in coral-rich lagoon and inner channel reefs 1–15 meters deep in mixed coral and algae habitats. These fish may be found solitary or in pairs. They feed on small benthic invertebrates like nematode
The nematodes ( or grc-gre, Νηματώδη; la, Nematoda) or roundworms constitute the phylum Nematoda (also called Nemathelminthes), with plant-Parasitism, parasitic nematodes also known as eelworms. They are a diverse animal phylum inhab ...
s, flatworm
The flatworms, flat worms, Platyhelminthes, or platyhelminths (from the Greek πλατύ, ''platy'', meaning "flat" and ἕλμινς (root: ἑλμινθ-), ''helminth-'', meaning "worm") are a phylum of relatively simple bilaterian, unsegment ...
s, gastrotichs, mussel
Mussel () is the common name used for members of several families of bivalve molluscs, from saltwater and Freshwater bivalve, freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other ...
s, oligochaete worms, and some amphipods.
Description
''H. leucurus'' has 9 dorsal spines, 13 Dorsal soft rays, 3 anal spines, and 13 anal soft rays. Males are recognized by the grey head when seen in natural light. The body has a lined pattern until female stage. Males have orange spots along scale rows.[
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References
External links
*
leucurus
Fish of Thailand
Taxa named by Johann Julius Walbaum
Fish described in 1792
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