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Description and coloring
Initial males and females have a finely striped body, hatched with 4 to 6 transverse sky-blue stripes on a yellow-orange to green background. Their heads are variegated with sky-blue lines, with a black dorsal spot. Their belly is bright yellow to faded. The caudal fin is forked and lyre-shaped.
Note that terminal males have a different livery: plain olive-green body with a broad blue bar bordered in red behind the head, which is mottled blue and pinkish. Juveniles are solid green with a pronounced dorsal spot.
Behavior and habitat
The peacock wrasse swims briskly but jerkily, mainly using its pectoral fins.
It lives mainly near the surface, around algae-covered rocks and in posidonia meadows, where it finds its food. They are carnivorous, feeding on invertebrates, crustaceans, molluscs and worms. Juveniles can act as cleaning labras, ridding other fish of parasites.
The peacock wrasse is shy but curious, approaching when sediments are disturbed.
Reproduction
It is a protogynous hermaphrodite species¯: individuals are born female and can transform into males during their lifetime, with a change in coloration. Some remain female throughout their lives, and some are born male directly. Eggs are laid in open water, and a single male may spawn several clutches.
Distribution
The peacock shiner is found in the Mediterranean (except in the Black Sea) and the Eastern Atlantic (from Portugal to the Gulf of Guinea). More abundant on the southern shores of the Mediterranean, it is gradually spreading to more northerly coasts as the climate warms.
The peacock wrasse is a colorful Mediterranean fish with a lively, jerky behavior and an original biology linked to its hermaphroditism. It frequents rocky areas and seaweed beds, where it plays an important ecological role.
