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Halichoeres chrysus

A small, bright yellow wrasse, reaching at most 12 cm, of the family Labridae. 1 2 3 It lives in the eastern Indian Ocean and the western Pacific, at the edge of the reef on sand and rubble. 2 At night it hides in the bottom. 6

LabridaeIUCN: Least concern
Halichoeres chrysus

At a glance

Data from the scientific sources listed at the bottom.

Depth in the wild

15–60 m

0 m20 m40 m60 m80 m100 m

Size

up to 12 cm

03691215

maximum total length

Temperature in the wild

24–27 °C

18 °C34 °C

Where it lives

Red SeaWestern Indian OceanEastern Indian OceanCentral Indo-PacificWestern PacificCentral PacificEastern PacificWestern AtlanticEastern AtlanticMediterranean

Eastern Indian Ocean (Christmas Island) and western Pacific: from the Solomon Islands north to southern Japan and south to the Rowley Shoals and New South Wales. 2 It has recently also been recorded in Tonga. 2 In the Indian Ocean it is replaced by the related species Halichoeres leucoxanthus, with which it overlaps in Indonesia. 2

Conservation

NEDDLCNTVUENCREWEX

IUCN Red List: least concern (2009). Red List data taken from FishBase and GBIF. 2 4 It does not appear in the CITES lists checked on Species+. 5 A study on imports of marine ornamental fish into the European Union from 2014 to 2021 places it 19th on a list of species to be monitored, based on quantities traded, trends over time, IUCN status and vulnerability. 8

How to recognise it

Tap a number on the photo: the key explains what to look for.

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  1. 1Bright yellow body head and chest yellowish orange 2 3
  2. 2Pale green bands irregular, on the head 2
  3. 3Spot behind the eye clearly visible here 2
  4. 4Spot on the dorsal fin black, at the front of the fin 2 3
  5. 5Clear tail corners the golden forms of Thalassoma lutescens lack them 3

Life in the wild

Where it is found

The reef margin, in areas of sand and rubble. 2 It usually stays between 15 and 60 m, but the full range is 2-70 m. 2 3 In Reef Life Survey counts it was observed in the sea between 19.8 and 31 °C. 3

What it eats

A study on reef fish classes it among feeders on mobile invertebrates. 7

Behaviour

It usually lives in small groups. 2 In the laboratory it has a very clear day-night rhythm: during its nightly rest phase it hides in the substrate. 6

Reproduction

When breeding it forms distinct pairs. 2

In the aquarium

From the experience of the BallingMania community.

Community rating
Swimming level
lowmediumhigh
Coral compatibility
lowmediumhigh
Aggression
lowmediumhigh
Care difficulty
lowmediumhigh
Original sheet

A small fish belonging to the family Labridae, yellow in colour; when young it has four black dots on the dorsal and caudal fins, which in adulthood are reduced to two in the female and one in the male.

It can be kept in tanks from 150 litres upwards, preferably with a sandy bottom, where it will hide at night and when frightened.

A very useful fish for those who keep SPS, a constant predator of pests (flatworms and nudibranchs).

It can be kept in pairs; obviously they must be introduced into the aquarium at the same time.

Did you know?

The pattern on the dorsal fin changes with age and sex: males have a large black spot edged with white at the front of the fin, females also have a second one, while small females and juveniles have a third, blackish one towards the end of the fin. 2
Juveniles have two eyespots on the dorsal fin and one at the upper base of the tail. 3
Kept in constant dim light, its activity rhythm stayed close to 24 hours (24.42 hours on average), a sign of an internal clock. 6

Sources

  1. Froese R., Pauly D. (eds.), via WoRMS (2026). Halichoeres chrysus Randall, 1981. World Register of Marine Species.
  2. Froese R., Pauly D. (eds.) (2026). Halichoeres chrysus, Canary wrasse. FishBase.
  3. Reef Life Survey (2026). Halichoeres chrysus, Yellow wrasse. Reef Life Survey.
  4. GBIF Secretariat (2026). Halichoeres chrysus, IUCN Red List category. GBIF.
  5. UNEP-WCMC (2026). Search for Halichoeres chrysus in the CITES lists. Species+.
  6. Gerkema M.P., Videler J.J., de Wiljes J., van Lavieren H., Gerritsen H., Karel M. (2000). Photic entrainment of circadian activity patterns in the tropical labrid fish Halichoeres chrysus. Chronobiology International.
  7. Mattos F.M.G., Mulla A.J., Denis V., Lin C.H., Lin T.H., Nozawa Y. (2025). The Role of Live and Dead Corals in Shaping Fish Assemblages Across Life Stages. Ecology and Evolution.
  8. Biondo M.V., Burki R.P., Aguayo F., Calado R. (2024). An Updated Review of the Marine Ornamental Fish Trade in the European Union. Animals.

Sources checked on 5 November 2026. Community texts and ratings are kept separate from the scientific data.

Download the original sheet (Italian)All species