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Project Noah Nature School
Thalassoma pavo
Locally known as 'Vladika', the ornate wrasse is a very colourful small fish of shallower waters near shores. Both sexes are very colourful, and when they swim, you have the impression that all colours of the spectre are present. The intensity of colours depends on age, sex and mating season. Both sexes have brown-orange head with a distinctive bright blue pattern. Beside this, there is a distinctive sexual dimorphism - female (pics 1 and 2) is smaller, 12-15 cm in length, and it sports five blue vertical lines on both sides, and one black spot in the middle of the back. Males (pics 3-6) are bigger, reaching about 20cm in length, and generally brighter coloured - with the body appearing orange or green.
Native to East Atlantic and Mediterranean sea, Ornate wrasse is a very common fish in Adriatic, usually very close to shores. This summer (as every summer) we observed it on every beach in the area, between rocks and on rocky bottoms in shallow waters close to shores, all sites very rich in algae, with some patches of sea grass around.
Spotted on Jul 20, 2021
Submitted on Aug 2, 2021
1 Comment
What's the difference between the orange males and the green males?