Macropharyngodon bipartitus
| Common Names: | Splendid Leopard Wrasse Vermiculate Wrasse |
| Synonyms: | Macropharyngodon varialvus |
| Family: | Labridae |
| Category: | Labroids |
| Distribution: | Indo Pacific; Western Indian Ocean, ranging along the African coast southwards to Natal, South Africa, but the principal subspecies is absent from the Red Sea. An important subspecies (see below) is found in the Red Sea, particularly around the Gulf of Aqaba. |
| Main Ecosystem: | Reef; Inhabits mature reef systems with abundant growths of stony corals such as Acropora. More likely to be associated with stretches of sandy substrate adjacent to the corals than with the corals themselves, as the species buries itself in the substrate to avoid danger. |
| Temperament: | Peaceful; Mostly peaceful, and capable of co-existing with other Wrasses in a suitably sized marine aquarium, along with a range of other peaceful marine species, though the choice of other Wrasse species in such a setup should be made with care as the Vermiculate Wrasse is a somewhat delicate fish. The species can be maintained in groups in the aquarium provided only one male is present - the species establishes a haremic social system in the wild, with one male attending to a group of females. Compatible with a wide range of peaceful and small marine fishes such as Gobies, Blennies, Firefishes, Dragonets, and will also settle in with fishes such as Dwarf Angelfishes provided that the Wrasse is introduced before the Angelfish. Will not molest corals or other sessile invertebrates, and usually considered unlikely to be a threat to ornamental shrimps such as Cleaner Shrimps that are of similar body size to the fish itself, but be advised that since small crustaceans and molluscs form its principal wild diet, the integration of this fish into a reef aquarium may be associated with some minor issues vis-a-vis the 'cleanup crew' of Turbo snails etc.; whilst adult snails are unlikely to be molested, baby snails will almost certainly attract attention from the fish. It may therefore be wise to consider maintaining a separate colony of such molluscs in a refugium to facilitate a continued population in an aquarium containing this fish. Otherwise, the fish is not only suited to a reef aquarium, but should be given a reef aquarium as first preference because it possesses a definite need for the security provided by a diversely populated environment. |
| Diet: | Carnivore; The Vermiculate Wrasse requires specialised feeding, most notably copepods and amphipods for long term health, though it may be possible to adapt juvenile specimens to broaden their diet with Cyclop-eeze and other marine fish foods. Unless one has an active refugium producing large numbers of live marine crustaceans for the fish to feed upon, purchase of this species is strongly discouraged. Likewise, since foraminiferans and small snails comprise a signififcant proportion of its wild diet, mollusc flesh should be provided, and preferably in the form of small live snails. |
| Care: | As cited above, a fish that maintains a haremic social system in the wild, and with sufficient space and a sufficiently large and efficient refugium to provide it with food, a naturalistic harem of 1 male and 4 to 6 females can be maintained in the aquarium, where they will provide much entertainment with their swimming antics. Sensitive to undue water chemistry fluctuations and should be regarded as a fish for the advanced aquarist in this regard, being on a par with some of the Butterfly Fishes in terms of intensive mnagement requirements in the aquarium. Additionally, the species has an intolerance of copper, making medication of specimens with diseases such as Oodinium difficult: the aquarist is therefore STRONGLY ADVISED not to purchase this species unless a hospital tank is on continual standby, and alternative non-copper medications are available to treat any possible diseases that may affect the fish. An aquarium for this species should be furnished sensitively with respect to its needs - a sand bed deep enough to allow it to bury itself is a must (3 inches minimum depth), as the fish sleeps buried in the substrate, and coral furnishings should include overhangs and caves to increase the fish's sense of security. Unlikely to fare well if kept with overly aggressive fishes such as some Dottybacks or Humbug Damsels, and if attempts to integrate the fish into a marine community with fishes such as Dwarf Angelfishes, for example, are made, then the Wrasse should be acclimatised for at least a month before the Angelfish is introduced. Again, the aquarist is STRONGLY ADVISED to regard this species as a difficult fish requiring advanced care, and to avoid the temptation posed by its sparkling colours unless prepared to devote much time and effort to its considerable maintenance needs. In addition, be advised (see the section on Variants below) that the Indian Ocean subspecies needs salinity levels of 1.021 to 1.023, whilst the Red Sea subspecies needs salinity levels of 1.023 to 1.027. Therefore the two subspecies should not be mixed in the same aquarium, and care should be taken to integrate each subspecies with fishes from comparable salinities in the wild (i.e., the Red Sea subspecies should be restricted to a specialist Red Sea aquarium). |
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| Potential Size: | Male: 13cm (5.1") Female: 13cm (5.1") |
| Water Region: | Middle, Bottom; In the wild, the Vermiculate Wrasse tends to remain in close proximity to stretches of sandy substrate, usually adjacent to coral growths, and if threatened will dive into the substrate and disappear from a predator's view. Once acclimatised to an aqarium, likely to be a bold and outgoing swimmer occupying other reaches of the aquarium, but the moment any danger - real or imagined - is perceived by the fish, a rapid dive into the substrate is the likely course of action. |
| Activity: | Diurnal; Active throughout the daytime. In the wild, spends its time foraging for small crustaceans and molluscs (amphipods, copepods, foraminiferans and small snails are its principal diet) in between heading for cover from larger, predatory fishes. Males will court females on a somewhat impersonal basis, moving from one female to another within the harem, and spawning with receptive females within the harem as opportunity arises. In the aquarium, the appearance of inquisitive behaviour and a willingnes |
| Gender: | No reliable external gender differences visible to the aquarist under normal maintenance conditions. |
| Breeding: | Not known in the aquarium. |
| Variants: | There are two subspecies of this fish - Macropharyngodon bipartitus bipartitus Smith (1957) is the principal or nominate subspecies, and the one with the widest range, found throughout the western Indian Ocean, while Macrophayngodon bipartitus marisrubri Randall (1978) is the Red Sea subspecies, which also possesses more vibrant colouration, and attains a smaller adult size of only 9.0 cm. |
| Comments: | A beautiful but highly specialised Wrasse that should only be purchased by advanced aquarists prepared to spend time, effort and money on providing the top-quality water maintenance technology and refugium cultures of small crustaceans and molluscs that the fish requires in its diet. Delicate, sensitive to even small water quality fluctuations, and likely to expire quickly if water quality deviates from optimum even by only a small amount. This is a fish that exhibits sharply contrasting traits upon acclimatisation - if all goes well, the fish is lively, vibrantly coloured, inquisitive and feeds readily from the word go, but if the fish is at all unhappy, its behaviour becomes reclusive, its colours fade and its demise usually follows in short order. Acclimatisation therefore needs to be performed with special care upon introduction, measures to minimise transport shock should be implemented, and above all, the fish should only be introduced to a MATURE aquarium with excellent live rock provision and plenty of small living food items provided by a refugium. Failure to do so will result in an expensive and heartbreaking loss. |
| Main Colours: | Red, Black, Green |
| Markings: | Spots Small |
| Mouth: | Normal |
| Tail: | Flat |
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| Image Credit: | Calilasseia |
| Submitted By: | Calilasseia |
| Contributors: | Calilasseia |
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