Checkerboard Wrasse Care Guide
Halichoeres hortulanus is a large Indo-Pacific reef wrasse with a checkerboard pattern; a carnivore that eats hard-shelled invertebrates such as snails and crustaceans.
Overview
Halichoeres hortulanus, the checkerboard wrasse, is a widely distributed Indo-Pacific reef wrasse described by Lacépède in 1801. Adults have a pearly body in which dark scale edges form a checkerboard pattern, with yellow markings on the head and dorsal area; juveniles show a black-and-white pattern that changes with maturity. It is a protogynous hermaphrodite, changing from female to male at maturity.
Taxonomy
- Family: Labridae
- Subfamily: Julidinae
- Genus: Halichoeres
- Scientific name: Halichoeres hortulanus
Habitat
FishBase records the species across the Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea south to Sodwana Bay (South Africa) and east to the Line, Marquesas and Tuamotu islands, north to southern Japan and south to the southern Great Barrier Reef. It is a reef-associated fish found over a depth range of about 0-40 m (typically 1-30 m), with juveniles in surge channels and adults over sand patches and reef slopes.
Tank requirements
- Minimum tank volume: 350 L (92 gal)
- Temperature: 24-26 °C (75-79 °F)
- pH: 8.1-8.4
- Carbonate hardness: 8-12 °dKH
- Substrate: sand bed (wrasses bury at night)
- Lifespan: 5-10 years
Diet
A carnivorous bottom-feeder that, according to FishBase, feeds mainly on hard-shelled prey, including molluscs, crustaceans and sea urchins. This makes it likely to consume ornamental snails and small crustaceans, so it is not safe with mobile invertebrates.
Compatibility
A peaceful, bottom-oriented wrasse toward fish, but its diet of snails, crustaceans and urchins means it cannot be trusted with desirable mobile invertebrates. Robust marine tankmates are appropriate; very aggressive damsels and predators should be avoided.
Conservation status
IUCN Red List: Least Concern (assessed 2008).