Leopard Wrasse

Geographical Origin and Habitat: Western Indian Ocean (from the Red Sea to South Africa and the Maldives). Lives in coastal coral reefs rich in crevices and deep coral sand, where the current is moderate.

Taxonomy and Morphology: Leopard Wrasse (Macropharyngodon bipartitus). Wrasse fish (Labridae). Compressed and elongated body; possesses protruding teeth to crush the tiny carapaces of crustaceans.

Social Behavior: Perpetual motion swimmer, constantly patrols live rocks. Peaceful, almost shy. At night (or if frightened) it performs a spectacular headfirst dive, burying itself completely in the sand to sleep.

Coloration and Sexual Dimorphism: Protogynous hermaphrodite. Females are orange-red covered with a gorgeous white reticulated/spotted pattern (like a glowing leopard). Dominant males change sex and livery: they become red/green with geometric bands and a black spot on the fin.

Aquarium Setup: Marine Reef (minimum 120 cm / 48 inches / 75G). Absolute Requirement: a bed of sugar-sized coral sand, AT LEAST 6-8 cm (2.5-3 inches) thick in large open areas (without obstacles) to allow its life-saving night dive.

Diet and Feeding: Extreme carnivore (Micro-predator). Huge challenge: in nature it only eats tiny foraminifera, gastropods and copepods torn from live rocks. You need to provide mature tanks packed with copepods and train it (months of work) to eat mysis and frozen lobster eggs.

Water Quality: Excellent oxygenation and crystal clear reef water. Very sensitive to salinity variations. They tolerate copper compounds, typically used to cure ich, very poorly.

Compatibility and Cohabitation: 100% Reef Safe. Totally ignores corals. However, fast and voracious fish (like aggressive damselfish or large tangs) will steal its food in the water column starving it to death. Pair with quiet or slow fish.

Aquarium Breeding: Totally absent. Born all females, in the absence of a male the largest will undergo a sex and livery transition (in a few months) but they will never spawn in closed systems.

Risks and Diseases: Starvation (Fading) or Broken Snout. Risk 1: They starve in 70% of cases within a month if the tank is not boiling with live benthos. Risk 2: If the sand is too shallow or coarse, in an attempt to dive into it at 20 mph they will fatally shatter their jaw.