Ornate Wrasse

Photo: pinesnake · © all rights reserved

Brilliantly coloured males dart across the column faces picking at small crustaceans and polychaete worms in the crevices. Their vivid green and red patterning stands out against the dark basalt, and spawning aggregations form in mid-summer at the shallowest column tops. They are important controllers of echinoderm and small invertebrate populations on the rock surfaces.