Following on from Reefbuilders recent news of this rare wrasse entering the UK trade, I was thrilled to be first to photograph it in detail as it entered retail via Finest Aquatics in Widnes. Priced at just over £1700 this Bodianus masudai is definitely a fish for the collector, but for the money you’d look to be getting a stunning, healthy showpiece fish that wows not just with it’s rarity, but also with it’s candy apple red stripes on a silvery white and yellow background. Reaching just 12cm, this specimen looks full grown or very close and this is reinforced by the vivid red colouration which is reputedly somewhat more maroon in juveniles. In nature the species inhabits water depths of up to 113m and hails predominantly from the Japanese archipelago, being found in Izu, Oshiwa, Okinawa and various other nearby islands. It can also be found in Taiwan and the Coral Sea, where specimens may represent a distinct form. Part of the Bodianus neopercularis complex it can be distinguished from several other similar species by the yellow colouration and the relatively high body of adults. Some authorities classify this species into the Trochocopus subgenus with the Bodianus genus.
You can view this species plus many other Hogfishes HERE
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