Dragon Wrasse Identification Guide

Key identification features

• Juveniles are mottled brown, white, and olive with frilly, weed-like extensions on the dorsal fin and head that mimic drifting algae
• Adults have an elongated body with a blunt, sloping forehead
• Adult base color is green-gray, overlaid with pink to orange squiggly (scribble-like) markings on the head
• Two long, often-erect spines at the front of the dorsal fin
• Crescent-shaped tail; grows to about 30 cm (12 in)

Common look-alikes

• Juveniles resemble other cryptic reef fish that drift like algae, such as juvenile leaf scorpionfish, but the dragon wrasse actively steers itself rather than drifting passively and shows fin-ray tufts rather than a flattened leaf-shaped body
• Adults can be confused with other blunt-headed wrasses, such as the checkerboard wrasse, but the dragon wrasse's paired erect dorsal spines and pink facial scribbles are distinctive

Where you'll see one

Found on sand and rubble patches near reefs throughout the Indo-Pacific, from shallow lagoons to reef flats, where it flips rocks and rubble to uncover hidden prey.