Notolabrus fucicola (Richardson, 1840)

Scientific Naming and Classification

Notolabrus fucicola, the scientific name for this species first described by Richardson in 1840, is the largest wrasse species found in New Zealand's waters.

Size Characteristics

It grows to 45 centimetres (18 in) long in Australian waters, but reaches slightly larger sizes around New Zealand, where individuals can grow up to 60 centimetres (24 in) in length and up to 5 kilograms (11 lb) in weight.

General Body Features

This species has a relatively deep body and variable colouring.

Young Adult Coloration

Young adult fish are reddish-brown, mottled with green and orange.

Adult Coloration

Full adults are green-brown with purple shades and fuzzy yellowish vertical bars on their body and fins.

Juvenile Coloration

Juveniles have a similar colour to young adults, but also have yellow markings.

Broad Distribution Range

Notolabrus fucicola is distributed in the south eastern Indian Ocean and south western Pacific Ocean, occurring in both Australia and New Zealand.

New Zealand Distribution

It is found across all of New Zealand, including the Three Kings Islands, Stewart Island and Snares Island.

Australian Distribution

In Australia, it occurs off the south east coast from southern New South Wales, Victoria to eastern South Australia, and also around Tasmania.

Habitat and Depth Range

This species is found in kelp beds and on rocky reefs with some exposure to tides and currents, at depths between 1 and 90 metres (3.3–295.3 ft).

Lifespan and Territoriality

It is a territorial, long-lived fish, often living over 20 years, and defends its territory aggressively.

General Diet Composition

It is a selective forager, feeding on crustaceans including chitons, limpets, barnacles, mollusks, crabs, and sea urchins.

Ontogenetic Diet Shifts

Its diet changes as it grows: smaller fish between 10 and 18 centimetres (3.9 and 7.1 in) long feed mostly on amphipods and isopods, while larger fish prey mainly on bivalves, crabs, and gastropods.

Spawning Period

Notolabrus fucicola spawns during the southern Spring and Summer, from July through to December, and does not spawn synchronously.

Sexual Development Type

While many other wrasses are protogynous hermaphrodites, this species is a secondary gonochorist, where individual fish change sex before reaching sexual maturity.

Sexual Dimorphism and Male Morphology

It has two colour forms, but is not sexually dimorphic, and any population will only have one morphological type of male.

Sex Change Research Findings

Researchers have not yet found any individuals with gonads that are transitioning from female to male, but specific environmental or social conditions may still be involved in triggering sex change for at least some fish in a population.

Population Size Structure

Unlike protogynous hermaphrodite wrasses, populations of Notolabrus fucicola can have large individuals of both sexes.