Quinquevittatum Wrasse

Quinquevittatum Wrasse, Thalassoma quinquevittatum, also go by the name Five Stripe Wrasse. They are bright and charismatic fish, perfect for adding a colour and movement in a predator tank. They have spectacular, rich green bodies, covered in bright pink stripes.

Five Stripe Wrasse males and females are sexually dimorphic. Meaning they look different even though they are the same species. Females have white bellies and pink stripes on her cheeks. Whereas, males have yellow flashes on their underside, and deep blue, circular patches on their cheeks.

Quinquevittatum Wrasse, Thalassoma quinquevittatum, Ecology.

These fish live in the Indo Pacific. Their range is from Indonesia and Fiji. They also occur around: Hawaiian, Ryukyu and Tuamoto islands. They live on coral reefs and in lagoons. Females and young mostly prefer sheltered areas, compared to the males. Who can be found in loose groups above coral heads. Quinquevittatum Wrasse are protogynous hermaphrodites. Which means that, when they get old enough, breeding females transition into a male.

These wrasse have large diets and are active foragers. They are able to crack through mollusc and echinoderms, as well as catch shrimp and small fish. They can be described as ‘rock movers’, as they will overturn loose objects on the hunt for food. Quinquevittatum wrasse can also handle larger, armoured prey, thanks to their bashing technique. This is where they throw a prey item against a surface to break it up. These behaviours are interesting to watch.

Five Stripe Wrasse in the Aquarium.

It is important to copy the natural environment by providing plenty of nooks and crannies for the fish to explore. Hobbyists should invest in a jump guard to stop any unfortunate mishaps.

Quinquevittatum Wrasse do best when fed a varied diet. They will accept: frozen krill, large frozen mysis and whole frozen fish, that we enrich with garlic and vitamins. These additives are extremely useful for supporting fish immune systems. They will also devour live foods, such as feeder shrimp. Over time, they will accept high-quality pellet or flake. We adapt all our wrasse to aquarium life before they leave us. We focus on their health, and most are eating a good quality flake food and/or pellet, such as JBL Maris, before being offered for sale.