Mediterranean rainbow wrasse

Photo: Rossella · CC BY-NC

A small but intensely coloured protogynous hermaphrodite, rainbow wrasse are among the most active fish on the reef, darting across the substrate in search of small crustaceans and molluscs. Terminal-phase males display a striking orange mid-lateral band on a blue-green body and are among the easiest fish to photograph due to their bold, curious behaviour around divers.